In Darkness I Hide: A Zootopia Story
by DarkFlameWolf
Summary: A coming darkness looms on Zootopia. A wolf with a shaded past confronts her own demons, both in her daily life as a bank CEO and during the night, hunting for relief from the pain that has stalked her. As the threat close to home draws near, can she put aside her own struggles to defend what she holds dear? Rated M for strong violence and sexual themes. (Complete)
1. Monday - The Un-Standard Grind – Morng

_Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A  
_ _Monday – 06:23 AM – Scattered Clouds / Mostly Sunny_

Murana woke up panting, her entire body glistening with sweat, dribbling through her fur. She pressed a paw deep into the hairs of her forehead, massaging it gently as the final visages of the nightmare ebbed away into oblivion. She realized her breathing was rapid and fought to get it under control. The dream had been awful. She scarcely wanted to bring it to the forefront of her thoughts for fear of having it suck her back into nothing but terror and dread.

"You okay babe?" A groggy voice emerged beside her, the covers sliding away to reveal her husband.

Like her, Anthony was a timber wolf of standard grey complexion, with a pelt that was as unique as it was ordinary. His buff upper body denoted years of physical training and combat practice that was required of him by his job. He stretched forward wide as his tongue did curls in his open maw, grunting with satisfaction when several audible pops were heard up and down his spine.

He turned to Murana and laid a comforting paw on her leg, "Was it a bad dream again hun?"

She shook her head aggressively, "It's fine. I'll be fine."

His expression melted a bit at her dismissal, but he knew better than to try and force something out of her when she wasn't ready to divulge. At length, he shrugged, "Very well. Since I'm up, I might as well get dressed and start us a pot of coffee."

"That would be nice." She exhaled, feeling the last vestiges of panic recede.

Murana slipped out of the sheets, pacing over the fresh grass of the floor as she stood staring out the corner windows overlooking the verandah. The city of Zootopia spread forth like an expanse of twisted columns filled with beautiful majesty. Each individual spire designed uniquely like the mammal that inspired it. She could already see the steady flow of traffic from the early morning commuters making the trek to their daily routines.

The sound of the television interrupted her thoughts as she turned to the vivid screen resting on the carved, wooden dresser. Anthony always loved some sort of background noise as he went about his business in the den. It was the same major news report they had been airing for nearly a week now. Unusual nighttime electrical storms that tended to hover low over the city and travel from one end to the other. She wasn't much interested in the weather, so she refocused back on the city she loved.

"Man, you look beautiful." He marveled.

Her brown tail swished behind her agitatedly at the compliment, she still wasn't much used to those even after a year of marriage. Pivoting on a heel, she watched her husband gaze longingly at her, beholding her form bereft of any clothing. Unlike most wolves to include her husband, Murana had a unique, swirling pattern of black strands interweaving with the more traditional pelt of grey and white giving her a somewhat foreign look. She was lean and slender, but physically toned with muscles that could spring to life in an instant should the need to action arise.

"Flattery isn't going to get you anywhere this morning buster!" She laughed, shifting her eyes over to the wall clock. "You slept through your alarm and will be late for work if you don't hurry along."

He ignored her comment and strode up to her, coffee mugs in paw, to give her a passionate lick on the muzzle. He nestled himself up against her as a low growl rumbled in his chest, "Chief will understand if I'm a bit late this morning."

In one swift motion, she firmly pushed him away while simultaneously snatching her favorite coral mug from his paw. After a sip, "Your excuses are only going to get you so far with him. One of the reasons I married you was because I knew you were responsible and dependable, don't slack off now that you have a rich wife to come home to."

Anthony trailed a claw down the length of her lower jawbone, teasing the end of her lips with it. "Remind me again how I ended up with such a wonderful gal like you?"

She smirked behind her mug, "Hard to say at this point. Memory is failing me."

"Slick." He murmured, unable to hide his goofy grin. "Fine, fine. I'll go get dressed for work."

"It's about time you lazy bum!" She feigned a kick in the rear as he scampered over jovially to the bamboo bead closet.

Murana shook her head before resuming her vigil over the city. Taking deeper sips of her coffee, she breathed in the fresh aroma of the beans he used. Was that Macadamia Nut White Chocolate? She grinned as she brought it back up to her lips. He really was gunning for something more rambunctious tonight if he was treating her to this type of coffee. She hazarded a glance behind to see him shoving his head up through a blue collared T-shirt.

"Nuh-uh!" She clicked her tongue, taking big steps towards him. "You will not be wearing your uniform like it's casual Friday!"

"The standard blues is so itchy and tight on me. I don't like it!" He whined as she ripped the shirt right up off his body.

She firmly batted his abs hiding behind the stomach fur, "Only because you need to just cave in and buy a larger set. You're getting too swollen as it is with your exercise regime."

He wrapped an arm around her waist, bringing her in close, "You like that then babe? I can totally make these abs work for you tonight!"

Bopping him on the nose, "Yep, seriously forgetting how I ended up with you."

He barked a laugh as he slipped a quick lick before rummaging around in the chest of drawers. "You know you love me for my sense of humor!" She merely shook her head at this.

Pulling out a wrinkled pair of blue slacks complete with an already fastened belt, he padded over to the closet to pull down his collared, buttoned shirt, complete with name tag, lapels and badge. Wolford was an officer of the prestigious Precinct 1 of the Zootopia Police Department, still currently serving the call since his graduation from the Academy nearly five years ago.

Murana always did like a male in uniform. Tapping a finger to her chin, she admired Anthony as he fastened up his shirt and pulled on his leggings. She nearly closed her eyes in disbelief, "Seriously? I am going to have to iron out those pants tonight when you get home. They look ridiculous compared to your top!"

"Says the one who didn't approve of my first outfit." He smiled, revealing his teeth before plopping down on the bed.

"No wonder your boss hasn't promoted you yet in four years. You feel going casual is the modus operand at the ZPD. You know what you wear is part of the impression you give of your overall interest in getting ahead, right?" She tried to explain.

"I'm happy with where I'm at! I love my job, my den, and the love of my life! What more could I want?" He extended his arms out, gesturing to all that they had.

"Granted, it was a stroke of luck I found you at that coffee shop." She ruminated.

"Don't I know it!" With a wink he bounced up from the bed and gave her a quick kiss goodbye, gripping a good fistful of fur on her tail. "Baby, I want you to be just the way you are right now tonight when I come home."

"Hmm." She hummed into her drink as she brought it back up to her mouth, "That still remains to be seen." She flicked her head off in the direction of the door. "Now go on and get to work, I got to go meet someone this morning."

His countenance faded into a scowl. "It isn't him again, is it?"

She thumped the back of her paw on his shoulder, "Be nice. He's been with me for years. There's nothing for you to be jealous about and you know it."

"Yes dear." He turned shaking his head and shut the door quietly behind him, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

Shivering slightly from the lack of clothes, Murana turned the thermostat on the wall up a few degrees before resuming her stance opposite the verandah. Flicking her tail at an itch, she lamented the thought of getting dressed soon. She found the most delightful place in Sahara Square called the Mystic Springs Oasis. After all the time she had spent in Zootopia, she chided herself for not finding it sooner.

When she had first heard about the place from a fellow colleague of Wolford's, she couldn't exactly believe her ears that such a place existed. Her first visit was anything but comfortable however, given that it was a naturalist club. Once the initial shock had worn off and she realized that nobody really cared what you looked like with clothes off, she began intermingling with the patrons there and discovered a lot of good nuggets of info that couldn't be found anywhere else.

After some reminiscing, she knew she'd have to get ready eventually, but unlike Anthony, being the CEO of a bank sort of gave you a bit more leeway with your schedule. Figuring she'd at least finish the wonderful cup of coffee her husband had made before picking a suit to wear that day, she downed the rest of it in one gulp. Walking into the kitchenette in the front room, she set the mug into the sink before heading into her closet.

Selecting a delightful pinstripe suit with vertical teal bands on both the slacks and blouse, she fitted herself into her white undershirt before swearing as her tail knocked a picture over and off her nightstand. Picking it back up, she paused a moment to regard the subject of it. It was two wolf pups in a small red wagon. Both had been shaved clean of all their fur, but the older female pup was hugging her little brother as tight as she could while he idly played with something she had quite forgotten inside the wagon.

With a wistful look, she delicately set the frame back onto the stand, taking great care to arrange it just right so that it would be the last thing she saw before sleep. Finishing up getting dressed, she took one last look around to make sure everything was in order. She smirked as she saw the still messy bed. That'll be something for him to take care of when he gets home tonight. With a quick twist of the lock, she swept out the door into the hallway, giving a short bang on the wall for her little neighbor.

* * *

 _Savannah Central - Snarlbucks – On the Corner of Screech Ave. and Pride St.  
_ _Monday – 07:15 AM – Few Clouds / Mostly Sunny_

Murana weaved and threaded through the herds of sheep and cattle as she made her way down the bustling street, incessantly tapping on her phone as she texted her secretary of the things that needed accomplishing that day. The din was roaring as various street cars honked at the slow pedestrian mammals that were continuing their laborious crossing at the stoplight long after it had turned green. Like a seasoned pro, she didn't even need to look up to see where she was heading, having memorized these streets a thousand times during her years living here.

Coming up on a rather busy corner of Savannah Central, she glanced up to see the imposing structure of the ZPD; the glass dome atop its sodded rooftop gleaming in the morning sun. Dismissing the sight, she turned right into a corner coffee shop that happened to be one of her favorite locations. The line was already out the door this early in the day but she bypassed the crowd without breaking stride and entered into the cool interior.

She saw the crowd of mammals huddled towards the back at the cashier counter, where several ibexes frantically rushed to make the multitude of cappuccinos and lattes that were being ordered. She glanced over the rest of the dining area and spotted a few booths along the windowed front, each housing several hanging bulb lanterns above each table.

She spied a rather inconspicuous skunk sitting up in one of them, his legs dangling over the edge, idly swinging back and forth. He was wearing a rather obnoxiously yellow shirt with faded cargo pants. He sported a blue billed cap with the letters ZNN emblazoned on the front, something he had worn proudly the day he was hired by the company and received it as a hiring gift. Around his neck, he wore a small pine tree air freshener tab, held up by a makeshift lanyard since he had lost the original chain that came with it.

Murana clicked her phone off and placed it in her suit coat pocket as she grinned at the diminutive skunk, his head bobbing to some tunes only he could hear through his over-sized headphones. He already had a small latte cradled between his paws with another, much larger one opposite him in the empty half of the booth. She smiled at this kind gesture, that even after all this time he still was thinking of her during the morning routine.

Sidling up beside the unsuspecting skunk, she flicked off the headset, deftly catching it in mid-air before it clattered to the table. "How's my little stinker doing today?" She jested.

He gave her a look of indignation at having his music interrupted, but graciously accepted the headphones back. He tucked them away in his Andy Lagopus themed backpack, a New Year's gift from the head of ZNN to all his employees, before ensuring that he zipped the dislodged zipper up tight. "Doing just fine mom." He quipped back, readjusting the big-rimmed glasses on his face.

Murana slipped into the booth sitting across from him, lifting the coffee cup up to her nose and taking in a deep whiff. "Macadamia nut chocolate. I'm starting to think my husband has been stealing your ideas." She savored a sip, closing her eyes as she let the flavors meld in her mouth.

The skunk raised an eyebrow at her as he crossed his arms, "Well of course! I've lived with you far longer than he ever has. I think I know what you like."

Her shoulders slumped slightly, was he still angry about that? "Steven, you know you couldn't live with me forever. It was time for you to move out on your own. I think finding an attractive, stinky girlfriend will be good for you."

"Urgh!" He slammed his back up against the booth siding. "Stop treating me like a kid!"

"Then stop being so upset that we moved you out. It was time." Her eyes wandered over to a rather pretty skunk with a luxurious tail waiting in line to order. "Besides, I think that one over there would be a fine catch."

"That's not the point of why I brought you here." Steven replied, straightening his arms out, claws nearly scratching the table in exasperation. "I needed to talk to you."

"I'm glad actually." She admitted. "I hadn't heard from you in almost a week, I had thought something was wrong. I was looking forward to our next meeting."

He looked away, feeling a bit guilty, "Well, that's kind of the reason why I brought you-"

Her focus drifted down to his chest, where the air freshener hung, its colors bleached from years of wear. "You still carry that grungy old thing around?" She indicated it with a claw.

He gripped it lovingly, bringing it to his nose to smell the pine scent that he still believed it held. "Yeah! This was the first gift you gave me after I…um…"

She cocked an eyebrow, "Stunk up my apartment for the first time."

"I'm still sorry about that." He apologized sheepishly.

She leaned across the table to playfully pull the bill of his cap down over his eyes. "It's fine. I'd like to say that after all those times I've gotten used to your smell. You're still my little stinker!"

Steven managed a small chuckle from that. "I like it." He spoke, fiddling with the tree. "It keeps me calm when I'm at work and Chris is picking on me."

It was Murana's turn to fold her arms, "Is he still bothering you? Want me to take care of him?"

After a nervous laugh, "No, that's not necessary. If it gets really bad, I think I can have my boss talk to him."

"Well, you know how to contact me if it comes to that." She uncrossed and took up her drink again.

His eyes bulged suddenly "Oh, that's right! That reminds me." He dug into his backpack, sifting through its contents with purpose. He set aside a camcorder beside him on the seat, which drew an inquisitive look from Murana. At length he drew out a small, unassuming pink box. He pushed it shyly across the table toward her. "I bought this for you the other day."

Murana stared at it, quite unsure what to make of it. She glanced around the café, "Here? Of all places Steven? You know this puts me in a bit of an awkward position. I am a happily married woman!"

He slapped a paw to his forehead, nearly knocking his cap off. "No! Will you please just open it? It's not anything like that!"

She smirked at him, revealing several teeth. "I'm just teasing you. Although I have absolutely no idea what you could possibly have-"

Her words caught in her throat as she beheld the two, gleaming earrings propped up in the small casing. They were fashioned exactly in the shape of the pine tree dangling around Steven's neck. She picked one out before the other, holding each in her paws, admiring them in the light of the lamps. Their vibrant green shimmered in the rays, causing a few patrons to notice and look in their direction. She brought them close to her nostrils, drinking in the scents of the forest.

"You even got them scented?" She remarked incredulously.

Steven swung his legs excitedly, apparently pleased with himself. "I figured they'd look good on you and would protect you from bad smells."

She lifted his hat off before ruffling the small tuft of fur on his head. "I would never think you smell that bad!"

He quickly straightened up his mane before slapping the bill cap back on defiantly. "You know I hate it when you do that!"

She drew back in mock hurt, "And here I thought you loved it when I did that!"

He rolled his eyes at her, "Well, I was thinking of you on our special day today and I thought something like that would look good on you." He raised his scented freshener up. "I even had to part with this for a few days while they took a mold of it."

She had paused in mid-piercing of an ear as she stared at him, "What special day?"

A look of anguish briefly flitted over his face. "You don't remember?" After a few moments of silence, he sighed. "You saved me today, eight years ago."

She finished putting in the second earring, sharing his sudden, miserable mood. "Oh…I'm so sorry Steven. I had completely forgotten. I was just-"

He turned to the side, looking out the window at the meandering crowds shambling past the shop. "It's fine. You're busy. I understand that. You're an important person and have things to do constantly every day."

She shook her head. "That's no excuse. I should have remembered this anniversary. I know how special it was to you…to us."

She cursed softly as the buzzing of the phone in her pocket interrupted their conversation. Steven's damning look as she excused herself to pick up the call only proved to further his point. She ignored his mouthing of _'see?'_ as she turned her head to accept the call.

"This is Mrs. Wolford." She listened a few seconds before pinching the bridge of her nose in disgust. "Are you serious Trudy?" She growled. "That bumbling idiot is going to be the death of this bank! We need to get him off the damn payroll fast and fix this mess. See to it he is fired before I get there. Thank you Trudy." She nodded a few more times before clicking off. She turned to meet the accusing eyes of Steven. "Look, I've got to go."

"Of course you do." He uttered flatly.

Exhaling loudly, "Look, I love these gifts." She tapped the earrings now in her ears. "And I'll treasure them dearly. In fact I'll wear them all day today!" That brought a glimmer of a smile from the skunk but it did little to heighten his spirits. "Tell you what…I'll make it up to you. What do you say you and me go out to get a bite to eat tomorrow at the Oat and Cloister at the pier?"

He whistled apathetically, "That's a fancy place. I'm not sure what Wolford would think about you taking me there."

She gave him a look of regret, "I'm sorry I haven't been returning your calls lately. I've just been very busy, but I do plan to spend more time and get to learn how well you're doing at ZNN. It seems they recently gave you a promotion, that's exciting right?"

"Yeah," he muttered, "about three months ago."

"Oh…" She grimaced.

"Well, there's still something I want to-" He began, waving a paw to allay her shame on the matter. He was apprehensive about what he was going to say next, unsure of how she'd react.

"Can it wait?" Murana asked, placing her cell phone back in her coat pocket and fixing herself to get up and leave.

Afraid she'd walk out before he had a chance to get out what he needed to say to her, he blurted, "I don't think I want to do this anymore." His rate of speech sped up to match his anxiety.

A few hairs bristled on the back of her neck. "What do you mean?"

Gripping the coffee nervously and taking a drink, "I actually called you here to talk about our arrangement. I thought I was helping you assist in capturing serial killers, ones that were going around Zootopia and killing folks. You know…serving justice and all that. You'd always come back smelling different, but at the time I…I kinda really liked the smell so I didn't question it." He finished, rubbing the back of his neck fretfully.

"Look if you don't want to tell me anything further, you can-" Murana attempted to reach out to him, to put a consoling paw on his arm. He drew back suddenly, drawing a hurt expression from her.

"I realize now it was the smell of death." He quivered involuntarily. "This needs to stop. I don't think I can go through with this anymore." He began to hyperventilate, taking in short, panicked breaths. His eyes went back to her face, "Last Tuesday I saw the killer with my own eyes."

She held his gaze a good, long moment before she relaxed back into her seat. "You know what Steven? Don't even worry about this anymore." She could see he wasn't calming down that much. "Steven, listen, take your medicine. You're starting to not breathe."

Swiftly unzipping an outer pocket where Andy's smiling mouth was, he fetched out a small inhaler. He popped it in his mouth, taking a deep inhale of the puff; holding his breath for several seconds before letting it back out in a rush. He did another application before setting it back down on the table, his breathing slowly stabilizing.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled, taking the blame for his condition.

Murana shook her head, expression softening. "Never apologize for who you are Steven. I love you just the way you are and will continue to love you just the same. If you're that upset about this arrangement then you don't have to participate anymore."

"You sure?" He asked hesitantly.

"Of course!" She smiled, finally being able to pat him on the paw. "I'm sorry though Steven." She rose up from the booth. "I do have to get going to save my bank from another disaster. I apologize you had to see…that last week." She added hesitantly as an afterthought.

The skunk debated pulling out a crumpled piece of paper from his backpack, timidly tossing it on the table. "This is the last time I'm helping you Murana." He held her gaze, his own on the verge of tears. "But if I'm truly your little stinker like you say I am, you'll not take this one. Please…just walk away. For me." His lower lip was near to quivering.

She stood beside him, looking down on his small frame. Nothing was exchanged for several moments. "You want to meet up here tomorrow morning, like usual?" She offered. After a moment, he nodded his head briefly. "That's better. I'll see you then. Good luck today at work."

Murana patted him on the shoulder, deftly picking up the crumpled piece of paper he had laid on the table before walking out the café door. Seeing that she had taken it anyway despite his plea, he began to cry. It wasn't until he felt a presence next to him that he looked up to see the same female skunk she had pointed out earlier in line. She gave him a concerned look, tilting her head as she bounced her tail in curiosity.

"Um…are you Steven Stinkman?" After confirmation, she batted her eyelashes at him. "This wolf told me that you might need some cheering up and asked me to come sit next to you."

He slammed a paw on the table as he jerked around to yell out the store, "Mom!"

* * *

 _Savannah Central - Lemming Bros. Bank Corporate HQ – 44th Floor, Executive Offices  
_ _Monday – 08:52 AM – Few Clouds / Mostly Sunny_

Murana swiftly made her way down the street, ignoring the din of honking and various growls and moans of the morning commute. Her mind was focused solely on the issue at hand, which was to get to her job quick and fix the unfolding catastrophe that was most likely getting worse by the second. She rounded the sidewalk corner and nearly stumbled upon a small, brown fennec fox wearing a rather obnoxious pair of shades. He was standing near a trash dumpster with a variety of wrapped burritos piled high on a rolling food cart situated beside him.

"Hey, watch it lady!" He raised both arms in defiance as he bellowed out in a deep voice.

She roared back, jabbing a claw at him, "You watch it! I know your game and what you're selling. It's a crappy scam with subpar ingredients. I can smell the inferior quality of meats you have on display and it's shameful to think you were even given a license for commerce and food handling."

"Now wait just a second there-" He began, taking off his glasses to get a better look at her, a bit taken aback by how much she knew about his enterprise.

"You look here fox!" She rebuffed. "I've seen you around my bank soliciting for money from my employees without a permit from the owner of the property, which is against local laws in the business district of Zootopia. You have no business being in this section selling your ill-gotten food. If I see you again, I will call the cops and have you arrested." With a final nod, she rose back up and smoothed down her suit. "Now when I come back out for lunch, I best see you gone."

"Tch, fine lady. Whatever." He waved arrogantly before packing up the burritos into the trolley and unhitching the wheels.

Satisfied that she got her point across, she glanced down at her phone as it buzzed. Another urgent text was screaming through her screen. Sighing heavily, she walked up to her building and looked up. She spied the small object hurtling down towards her position. Raising her paw up, she caught the small lemming, its velocity causing her to stumble back a few steps and take a knee. The backside of her paw barely scraped the sidewalk below. Several mammals gasped in shock at seeing the impromptu rescue.

"You should have let me die!" The lemming wailed, trying his best to wriggle out of her grip, doing little more than ruffle his business tux even further.

She rolled her eyes at him, "You drained over $300,000 out of ZNN's accounts and you still felt you deserved to keep your job? How does one ever go about making a mistake like that Carl?"

"It was an honest accident!" He chittered, his buck teeth shaking wildly with each word. "I promise I'll never do it again! I'll learn…I mean I've learned from my mistakes!"

"You almost didn't." She gazed up the high rise. That had to have been at least a thirty story drop. She should have probably just let him hit the ground. Her wrist hurt something fierce. She looked back down and glared at him. "You are right about one thing. You'll never be doing it again! If Trudy hadn't told you yet, you're fired."

A look of hope flitted across his face as he looked up into her eyes, praying he'd find mercy there. Within moments he knew his career was over. He went slack in her paws. "Just kill me now."

"That'd be a favor." Murana roughly put him down on his feet. She stared down at him as she rose up. "Go find another job and pray that it has nothing to do with accounting."

Flouting his meager attempts at groveling, she brushed him off and strode into Lemming Brothers Bank. Many rodents and other small mammals scurried out of the way of her paw pads walking across the front foyer of the bank. She smiled at the ferret receptionist manning the front desk before waiting in the mob of miniature animals staring up at the elevator lights as it counted down the floors. It would have looked quite comical for an outsider to see a timber wolf towering over the multitude of the critters surrounding her.

The doors opened before a flurry of movement. As if by unspoken code, the plethora of mammals shuttled in and out of the elevator without so much as a bump or push. They streamed up the escalators to their prescribed balconies overlooking the primary space where Murana herself stood, alone in a sea of lemmings, marmots and more. Unencumbered by the fleeting stares cast her way, she continued to send various texts with rising alarm to Trudy.

After multiple stops, the elevator landed on her floor near the top of the building. Several small doors along the sides of catwalk lining the interior of the cabin slid open to reveal various tubing and other small passages that would funnel the smaller mammals to other parts of the building. Murana tramped off and almost ran right over Trudy who had been lingering at the dual doors for her appearance.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?!" Murana roared, stumbling past the frightened lemming and trying her best not to trample over any others loitering around nearby. After recovering, she faced Trudy and stared down at her petite form. The small mammal was dressed to the nines in a beige suit with skirt, a pearl necklace and dozens of diamond rings. It would have looked hilarious had it not been so serious a situation. "So you mean to tell me Carl sold off all of ZNN's assets?" Murana waggled her phone with the texts clearly visible detailing how much worse the situation really was than when it had started.

She bumbled a response back, "Yes! It was all I could do to stop him, but by then it was too late. The funds had already been transferred and the lock-in for the transaction won't expire until the close of business today!"

"Does Lagopus know about it yet?" Murana queried.

"I don't know, but it won't be long." Trudy dutifully informed.

Murana snapped her fingers, indicating her secretary to follow her. As they went past multitudes of walkways and balconies bolted into the walls of the cubicle farm, she instinctually shielded several lemmings from an exploding printer, a result from weeks of misuse, and caught several others mindlessly walking off said balconies as they absorbed themselves in their phone apps. At length, they arrived at her office, having saved countless lemmings from unfortunate circumstantial deaths.

Shutting the door behind them, she surveyed the office. It was rather quaint for her position as CEO of Lemming Brothers Bank. It was no bigger than a standard bedroom with a lone redwood desk in the center placed atop a faux zebra-patterned carpet. A widescreen TV was mounted on the wall opposite a decorative evergreen plant. An elevator door for Trudy was installed directly into the base-boarding just beneath the TV. Wheeling the chair around behind the desk, Murana flopped down into it, nearly ripping her laptop open as she signed into it.

"Have we tracked any of our clients who aren't tapping into their accounts recently? Do we have sufficient capita in their funds to loan ZNN enough to stave off any overdraws?" She was rapidly crunching the numbers of where and how to move the money so that everyone had roughly enough for any reasonable major purchasing that business day.

A moment of silence was all it took to attract Murana's attention. She glanced up to see a flustered Trudy, now standing atop her desk, flexing her hands together over and over again. "That's the problem," she began reluctantly, "I might have freaked out a bit too much and told one of my friends about the disaster in my panic and it…might…have gotten back to some of our clients?"

A lethal glint invaded Murana's eyes as she stared at her inept secretary, "What did you do?"

The lemming raised both her paws up in supplication, "Please forgive me! The moment they heard of the grievous error, they decided to pull out their funds to prevent loans from being drawn from their accounts."

She blinked once at Trudy. "All of them?"

"All of them." She nodded.

Murana had to keep calm, trying not to hyperventilate in front of her idiotic secretary. Just what connections did this daft lemming have that could have prompted this shit-storm of disaster? Whether she did this purposefully or not didn't matter at this point for her. What mattered was trying to save her bank from bankruptcy and secure the faith of her remaining clients that were left on the books. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves.

Serenely opening up another tab on her browser, she asked soothingly, "Trudy, can you give me a description of what you do here?"

The lemming blinked at her boss, "I don't understand."

She clicked her nails on the wood, "Your job. Its description. Now."

Reciting from seemingly rote memory, Trudy prattled off, "Executive Assistant: provides administrative support and clerical assistance to executive and director-level management within a company. Roles include helping build the bank schedule, management of division employees, management of executive itinerary to include scheduling meetings, travel and other demands on the executive's time."

With a click of the mouse, Murana licked her lips. "Wonderful Trudy! Thank you so much for that."

"I'm sorry?" She uttered, very confused on what had just transpired.

"Your job. I just put an opening on Cat's List for it. You're fired." She said matter-of-factly.

Little tears began to well up around the edges of her eyes, "You're…firing me? But you can't! I've done so much for you…for this bank!"

Leaning back in her chair and propping her crossed hind paws up on the desk, Murana glared at the lemming, "Oh, I feel you've done plenty. Because of this debacle, my company is on the verge of collapse and now I have to save it from failure. You've made one too many mistakes Trudy. It's time you moved on to other pastures."

"Please have mercy! I have a husband! Kids! How can I go supporting them?" She wailed.

Murana gave a snort as she waved a paw to dismiss the lemming, "Please, you have only one litter and your divorced husband is paying alimony up the ass for them. Do not try to tell me that you'll be hurting for support."

Trudy collapsed to her knees and groveled before her, crumpling the papers beneath her legs as she drug herself closer to the wolf. "Don't fire me! Please! I've been so faithful to you all these years!" The tears were flowing freely at this point, her speech becoming incoherent.

Arms crossed, the wolf watched as the tiny lemming sniveled and transitioned from a respected professional to a blubbering mess. At length, Murana rolled her eyes and spread her arms, "Try to have some dignity please. I know it'll be rough on you, but I'm positive that you'll make it through this hard time just fine. You need a hug or a moment to compose yourself before you walk out of my office?" She regretted offering the moment the words left her muzzle.

Nodding her head numbly, Trudy shambled over into the rather huge embrace of the larger mammal. Awkwardly putting her oversized arms around the tiny critter, she held the sobbing lemming in her arms. Murana had to admit that the little thing had grown on her these past few years since taking over the company from the previous owner who had died due to mysterious causes. Trudy had taken Murana under her wing and helped instruct her on the ways of banking. Murana was such an excellent student that within a scant year, she was making decisions and embodying the full mantle of leadership of the bank. No one questioned her skills and talents as CEO.

She was patting Trudy's head a bit when she opened her mouth to console her, "I understand that you-"

The words had barely passed her tongue when the lemming undid her hair pin and stabbed it deep into the wolf's chest. The assault was quickly followed by a piercing sting as two sharp teeth deep dug into her suit and pricked her skin. Roaring with fury, Murana rose up from the chair, knocking it backwards to the floor before gripping the lemming by the scruff and tossing her against the far wall like a ragdoll. Within moments, she was upon the murderous secretary with her hind paw pressing firmly into the fat folds of Trudy's windpipe.

Ignoring her flimsy gasps for air, she dug her paw deeper into the lemming's throat, her fanged maw drawing a terrified look from Trudy. "You little witch! Did you think I was going to cut you off with no assistance to help you find a new job? I had owed you that much! Now it seems you'll have to suffer the next few miserable years of your pathetic life behind bars!"

"What? No…gragh!" Trudy choked on her spit, Murana's leg pressing down harder to shut her up.

Murana had the cell phone up to her ear, pausing briefly to pull the hairpin out of her chest before tossing it aside into the trash can with expert ease. After a few moments, a rather effeminate voice picked up the line.

"Yes, is this the ZPD?" She glared down at Trudy. "I have apprehended an individual who has made an attempt on my life. Yes, I am Mrs. Murana Wolford, CEO of Lemming Brothers Bank." A few incomprehensible ramblings later, she nodded at no one in particular. "Yes, I am aware that my husband will be unable to assist. Can you send someone now to come pick up the mammal? Thank you so much Clawhauser. Remind Wolford to buy you a donut next time he sees you."

With a satisfied smirk, she clicked the phone off and dropped it in her suit pocket before resuming vigil over Trudy. It wasn't long before they could hear sirens blaring down the tall buildings, homing in on their position. Murana waited patiently over the lemming before a knock came to the door. After calling out to come in, she was surprised to see a rather small duo of officers. A vibrant, energetic bunny hopped into the room quickly, eyes darting about in what looked like an attempt to memorize the crime scene, while coming in behind her strolling casually was a red fox that seemed rather blasé about the whole affair.

"Good morning officers." Murana began, quickly shaking off her astonishment at the bunny and fox duo. Of course Chief Bogo would send the B Squad. She inclined her head to indicate the lemming trapped beneath her hind paw, "This is Trudy, the one who stabbed me in the chest with her hair pin," she tapped her lapel which had a sizeable hole, before pointing to the trash can, "and the weapon is in there, that you can take as evidence."

"Sounds like you got the whole scene set up for us then." The fox grinned.

"Stop it Nick!" The rabbit smacked his arm with the backside of her paw. "Thank you Mrs. Wolford. My name is Officer Judy Hopps and this is my partner, Officer Nick Wilde. We'll take it over from here!" She unfurled a plastic baggie and began gingerly picking the pin out of the trash.

Nick's eyes grew wide as he stared at the name placard on her desk, "You're Wolford's wife?" A low whistle. "Dang, I thought he was just joking when he said he had a sexy CEO as a wife!"

Judy chuckled, "And I thought you knew everyone in Zootopia Nick!"

He stuffed his paws into his pant pockets coolly. "Well I don't know everyone in Zootopia personally, but I may know of them." He stole a glance at the wolf, "Besides, I may have seen her once or twice outside this very building during one of my business ventures."

Seeing the half lidded expression of Murana, Judy caught the cue and quickly intervened, "And if you'd please excuse me!" She patted the wolf's leg to get up off of the lemming before attaching tiny handcuffs to the whimpering critter. "Thank you Mrs. Wolford."

Nick's gaze was roving about the room, taking it all in. He gestured back to the horde of curious lemmings who had stopped all work for the day to see what was going on. "So what life insurance policy do you have for these guys? Probably something expensive."

"We get a group deal." She stated flatly. "The company I go through understands the nature of these mammals. Thankfully they breed like rabbits."

Judy's ear flicked unconsciously at the statement, but she chose to ignore the comment. Even Nick's eyes darted to Judy to see how she'd react. In the end, she got up and lifted Trudy under her arm before turning to Murana. "Thanks for apprehending the suspect. We'll make sure she gets to jail safely."

"She isn't a suspect, she literally stabbed me." She corrected the bunny.

Judy paused for but a moment, "Well, Officer Wilde here will get your story before we leave. It was very nice to…ah…finally meet you Mrs. Wolford." She swiveled on a paw before shooting a 'did-you-not-know-this-was-Wolford's-wife' glare at Nick and stalked out of the office.

"Charmed, I'm sure." Murana said monotonously.

Casually flipping out a pen and notepad, Nick wrote a small blurb at the top of the page, "Well it's not every day I get to meet colleagues' families and loved ones, so today has already been a real treat!" With a smug grin, he regarded the CEO, unfazed by her disdain for him, "So let's start from the top shall we? Who is Trudy and how did this begin?" Murana sighed audibly at this.

After what seemed like an interminable interrogation, Officer Wilde had all that he felt was needed to make a proper report and flipped the pad closed. With a suave goodbye, he left Murana alone in her office and shut the door rather roughly. She picked up and reset her chair before slamming into it angrily as she opened up several new emails that had come in. One aggravating one was from Andy Lagopus, owner of ZNN. It had a rather frantic nature to the writing and prompted immediate response.

She thumped her head on her laptop, "Why did you choose today of all days to make a purchase Andy?!"

Slapping the computer closed, she picked up her keys and swept out of the office, locking it swiftly behind her. As if on cue, all the lemmings surged out of their lethargy and began to look busy. With a low growl at their incompetence and inherent nature to find every likely excuse to not work, she flicked her tail at a few of them as she walked past, causing several to yip in shock.

Murana had no sooner gotten out on the ground floor of the bank lobby and was striding through the foyer when several screams and shouts directed her attention. Several gatling guns descended from the ceiling out of hidden panels and began taking aim at multiple customers throughout the room. She snarled before dropping to all fours and racing over to the front information booth, vaulting over it in a single bound before skidding to a halt on the freshly polished tile. The ferret receptionist squeaked at the sudden appearance of her CEO.

"What the hell were you thinking Trudy?!" Murana snapped, ripping open the lower compartment door at the base of the booth podium. Reaching into the small opening, she clicked a button which set the guns to standby. Within moments, they stopped revving up to fire and sagged visibly, their barrels pointing straight down.

Brushing down her suit, she stood up and assessed the scene. Multiple mammals and employees were slowly coming out of hiding behind couches, chairs, potted plants and pillars. She looked up at the two massive weapons and shook her head, "I must have been drugged or high when I signed those contractor papers. What was Trudy thinking, installing those things?"

She spent the next several minutes reassuring folks that things were under control and the overnight security measures were not going to go live anytime soon. She scowled up at the two guns. This would be another PR disaster for her bank. Yet another way Trudy was destroying her livelihood even after being fired. In time, the normal din and commotion resumed and mammals soon began to ignore the dangling weapons hanging from the ceiling.

Satisfied that all was at least stable for now, she turned to the revolving door entrance to see a lone otter standing there staring at her. He was fairly unassuming with a tailor fitted brown suit and a collared green shirt underneath complete with orange tie. What was most noticeable about the mammal was his rather round glasses that looked proportionally huge compared to his head. In the middle of the bridge was some tape to keep the crumbling lenses on his face.

"Can I help you?" She cocked her head as she padded up to him, looking down upon his rather small form.

Adjusting his glasses he smiled at her, "Yes ma'am. I believe you sent out a call for an executive secretary position?"

She was rather taken aback by the sudden appearance of an applicant. "That was fast. I just put that out an hour ago."

He chuckled, "Yes, quite. I just happened to be in the market looking for a new job when that got posted." He spread his arms wide, "So here I am applying for the job. A real stroke of luck that I found the CEO herself to apply to."

"You knew who I was?" She was already impressed.

He bowed briefly, "Of course Mrs. Wolford. I always do research on companies I apply to. It makes me more knowledgeable about their business and what they do. It also helps in interviews that you actually know what your future job entails before trying to apply for it."

"Clever otter." She grinned. Snapping her claws and pointing up to the gatling guns in the ceiling, "Tell you what, if you can get those things fixed so that they don't unintentionally activate during business hours, you've got the job."

He gave her a curious look, "I'm not sure I see how this relates to my job as executive secretary."

"You just said it." She beamed. "You would be executive secretary, and as such would do all the various jobs and duties the executive requires of you. Right now, I require this to be fixed by you. Consider it your interview."

"Brilliant." He replied, less than thrilled. "So how would I go about doing this?"

"Oh right!" She nearly slapped herself. She flipped a card out of her pocket and handed it to the otter, "This is a contractor we use to get structural work done within the bank of which this would most definitely apply. You can call them and," she gave him another card, "this is a special bank account we use for funds to apply to projects like these. Call the contractor and get them to fix this today."

He flipped the two cards over a few times, "I shall do my best Boss." Already shifting into the role, he had slipped out the title.

"Not yet I'm not." She smiled. "See you later today…um…"

He held out a paw, "Ronald Latrinae. But you can call me Ron."

She shook his paw amicably. "Good to meet you Ron. My name is Murana Wolford, CEO of Lemming Brothers Bank. Good luck!"

With that, she waved and slipped out of the foyer into the busy street beyond. Ron kept the smile up for her until she was out of sight. Turning to the two guns looming above him, his countenance visibly dropped as he contemplated what he should do next.

* * *

 _Having a full Original Character (OC) cast set in an established world and then having readers follow them is no small task for an author. You need to immediately make the primary protagonists likeable and immediately accessible to the reader. The first scene in the apartment was so critical in setting up who Murana could be as a character, providing both her light-hearted side with a potential darker one with her nightmares and possible traumatic past. We also need to establish quickly her family ties and friends, those whom she cares about and which we'll also follow throughout the story. To that end, I needed to hit up first, her primary relationships with both her husband, Anthony and her adopted son, Steven. Both scenes were critical in developing the core arcs of her character. It's not until we hit up the bank scene where things get a bit more interesting and we get a look into her work life and the struggles she deals with on a daily basis. The introduction of Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde was a great way to cement the readers into the world of Zootopia and ground this OC-centric fic in the reality of that universe._


	2. Monday - The Un-Standard Grind – Aftrn

_Savannah Central - Zootopia News Network Office Building – Corner of Elm and Birch  
_ _Monday – 11:07 AM – Sunny / Clear Skies_

Murana spied the tall spindle that was ZNN Studios crest the high rises as she turned the corner of Birch St. It was a magnificent structure where each side spiraled up into the sky like a curved horn. The northern-facing side was nothing but open panes of glass where one could see the busy inner workings of the mammals employed at this prestigious news company. She smiled wistfully as she closed the distance on the building; although she was here for a business reason, she just might get a chance to see her son at his job.

Upon entering through two layers of sliding glass doors into the vestibule, she could see the jittery arctic fox clicking his claws on the front informational booth counter. The white reynard was checking the clock on his phone every ten seconds, clearly anxious for something to happen. He was gaudily dressed in a tight-fitting teal suit with a white undershirt and maroon tie. She had to stifle a small snort at his attire that was clearly inappropriate for this time of year.

Flicking his tail agitatedly, Andy Lagopus looked up to see her walk through the entrance and flashed a devilish smile. "Mrs. Wolford!" He spread his arms wide in greeting as he sprang off the booth towards her. "So glad of you to meet me on such short notice!"

"Yes, I'm here to rectify a problem my idiotic secretary caused." She riposted.

His ears dropped slightly, "Clearly she isn't that bad of an employee, I'm sure it was just a simple mistake that-"

"I fired her and she is now on her way to jail. She just about bankrupted me." She explained hotly.

He wrung his hands, "Oh, that is very unfortunate." With a gulp and swift change in demeanor he switched topics effortlessly, "So I hope you've come here with a solution then?"

She kept walking towards the elevator, forcing Andy to keep pace with her. "Yes, I want you to cancel that purchase order you made immediately and save the buying for tomorrow."

"Well that's the thing, it already got charged through and if we cancel it now, it won't get cleared until tomorrow." He responded dismally, his normal chipper mood deflated.

Murana stopped suddenly as she rubbed a paw down her muzzle in frustration, "Then it's going to bounce when the numbers clear tonight at midnight. You're going to get over-drafted and that, along with a dozen other purchases clients are making, is going to send a red flag to the IRS and they'll come audit me and shut the bank down." She pinched the bridge of her nose, trying hard not to growl in rage.

"So does that mean we don't have money to work with?" He asked unsure.

"Yes!" She snapped, which caused Andy to step back a few paces. She sighed heavily, "I'm sorry, I am just a bit stressed. Can I look at your record books and see what we can liquidate for emergency funds so that can be in the system before the cutoff?"

He nodded vigorously, "Absolutely! We have plenty of merchandise we can sell off to help curb some of the damage." He bounced over to the podium, snapping his talons for the receptionist to move aside as he pulled out a box filled with memorabilia. "You think this will do?"

Murana sneered a bit as she pawed the contents of the box. It was filled with nothing but backpacks, mugs and magazines with Lagopus's face plastered all over them. It was a vanity project nightmare. She sifted through the junk and realized that even with all of this stuff it wouldn't be enough to match up with what was going out that day.

"Do you have anything better?" She waved her paw around as she thought of ideas. "Like unused desks, computers, printers, cubicle walls, anything office related we can chuck off for instant cash?"

Andy's eyes brightened, "Yes! Of course! We'd have to look in the records to see which assets are ready to be trashed. I'll have my secretary pull them up and we'll meet in my office upstairs. Is that okay?" With a quick nod from the wolf, he smiled. "Besides," he gave a quick peck on the lips to his face on the backpack, "I really don't think I could part with any of these anyway!"

Murana rolled her eyes, "I'll see you in ten minutes Andy. I need to visit someone here."

"Take your time Mrs. Wolford! I'll see to it that we're ready!" He beamed jovially.

Relieved to finally be rid of his perky presence, she rode the escalator up to the second floor balcony before heading over to the elevator that would allow her access to the upper floors. She got in and pressed the floor button she knew Steven would be working at and relaxed up against the glass wall of the cabin. There was a marvelous view of Zootopia as the elevator rose up alongside the exterior of the building, its rails shifting with the curvature of the façade.

Doors opening, she flowed out into the cubicle farm of dividers, hearing the constant flow of ticking coming from the multitude of keyboards strewn throughout the open bay room. Having memorized the layout from previous visits, she counted the openings down one row along the left side for several dozen meters before rounding the bend and seeing a small skunk tapping happily away on a report, oblivious to her presence.

She rapped on the metal end piece, causing the skunk to jump. "So you still wear that hat even indoors on the job?"

After recovering from his squeak, he pivoted the chair around and angrily glared at her, "You know I hate it when you sneak up on me like that! I could have embarrassed myself and stunk up this entire floor! I still…have problems with maintaining control."

Her ears drooped, "I'm sorry Steven. I'm just happy to see my little stinker again. I was in the area for business and I thought I should drop in and see how you were doing. Did you get that girl's number from the coffee shop?"

He slouched back, "No I did not! I told you I'm not interested or looking right now."

Her mirth fading, she realized this probably wouldn't be a very pleasant conversation, "Look, I'm sorry about this morning Steven. I didn't really expect you to find out."

Crossing his arms ardently, "Well I did and you showed no respect for me by taking that tip I got for you. I was hoping maybe, just maybe, you'd have the decency to honor your son's wishes and leave it. I put it out there because I thought for sure you wouldn't do that to me. After all, we've been through so much together! I guess it really doesn't matter since all I am is just an adopted son, not even a real son to you!" He ended bitterly, casting his eyes to the ground.

Murana's heart was pierced as she heard him utter those words. She had rescued Steven years ago and lacking his parents or the ability to track them down at the time, she took him into her home and raised him as her own. Now after all this time, it was her that was pushing him away and she felt powerless to do anything to stop it from happening.

"I'm sorry…I don't know what to say. My intent was not to hurt you Steven. You must understand that I'm doing this to save those who need help seeking justice." The skunk further sunk into the chair and looked away from her. Trying in vain to come up with something to ease the tension, she clicked a nail to her earrings, "I'm still wearing your present. They are lovely and they smell nice."

"Big whoop." He snarked, still not looking at her.

"Steven…please don't be like this." She pleaded. "You know I can't take it when you're angry at me."

His eyes locked onto hers, "Of course I'm angry. You kick me out of my home on your husband's insistence well before I was ready, you then barely text or call me unless it has something to do with your night excursions, and you completely forgot to celebrate my promotion to video journalist within ZNN." The mortified look on Murana's face sealed the deal, "Yeah, don't think I had forgotten that. And now today you completely miss our anniversary and showed just how much respect you have for your own 'son.' Sometimes I wonder if you even deserve the title of mom."

He couldn't have destroyed her resolve any better than if he had stabbed her right in the heart with a sword. With her tail tucked between her legs, she gripped the divider wall tightly, "I do apologize for all the times I was not a good mother to you Steven. I felt like I was doing my best but clearly I was not up to the task of being a parent. Maybe you're right…maybe I shouldn't be your mom."

Casting a glance in her direction to see if she was pulling his chain with her sincerity he was a bit jolted to see her genuinely remorseful, not even wanting to look him in the eye, but rather stare off down the row. He relaxed his arms, "I'm sorry I said those things…you just got me really frustrated."

She held up a paw, "No, no…you are absolutely right. I have failed you many times as a mother. I brought you in not knowing what to do with you or even how to raise you. Clearly it seems I was not up to the task."

Feeling guilty for lashing out at her like that, he cocked his head to the side, "That's not true, I feel you-"

"What's up Stinker?" Came a chipper voice from behind the partition.

With a sudden hop, a tawny-red maned wolf vaulted over into the cubicle and whacked Steven's hat off his head, chuckling as it hit the floor. He was about to comment further on his antics when he spotted the rather large wolf at the entrance to the skunk's workspace. "Oh, hello there Mrs. Wolford!" He straightened up, his expression and body posture changing to something more formal. "The name is Christopher Guára! Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Surprised Steven told you about me." She narrowed her eyes, unimpressed with this smaller wolf. The smell alone emanating from him was noticeable several spaces down but she had thought nothing of it until his appearance. "Is this that fox you were talking to me about earlier? The one who teases you?"

"Mom…that's not a good idea." He blurted out quickly, eyes darting back to the maned wolf.

The wolf twitched his ears in annoyance, a low growl erupting from his throat. "I am _NOT_ a fox! I am a maned wolf!" Rolling up the sleeves of his orange hoodie, he pointed a finger at Murana, unafraid of her tall and brooding stature. "You of all mammals should have recognized what I am!"

Folding her arms calmly, she leaned up against the divider edge. "With your size and color fur, you could even fool a fellow wolf into thinking you're a fox. Ever thought of dyeing it a different color to you know…be less confusing?" She smirked.

He snarled, baring his teeth at her, "Do not mock me. I don't care if you're some haughty bank CEO or Steven's mom. No one insults me or my species!"

"I'd rethink those teeth there." She clucked smoothly. "That is just the same as brandishing a weapon and I really don't think you want to lose your job. So I suggest you put those back in where they belong and move along now."

He cracked the muscles in his neck with a jerk, heatedly debating with himself on if it was worth dragging this out further. At length he unfurled his hoodie sleeves and huffed. "Whatever. Enjoy your visit with your son, but from what I heard it probably isn't going to end well." On his way out past her, he stole a look at her earrings. "And those look ridiculous on you, just like something Steven would like."

He scampered off quickly as Murana attempted a kick at his rear on the way out. Seeing that it was pointless going after the punk wolf, she turned back to her son. "Is he always this disagreeable?"

He shook his head, "Not really. He's actually kind of nice when he's not teasing me. I guess he just likes messing with those he considers friends. However, you just set him off with his trigger. He really doesn't like being called a fox or treated like one."

"And I don't like my son being teased either. Someone needed to put him in his place." She sniffed with finality, watching the retreating figure turn the corner and disappear.

"So…are we okay?" Steven broke her focus and brought her attention back to him.

"I don't know. I hope so." She smiled forlornly.

"Will you be going out tonight?" He pressed, holding her gaze.

There was silence between them, nothing but the sound of keyboards could be heard. Her expression was unreadable as she finally spoke, "We'll see Steven." His face fell at her words. There was no promise there. "Look, it's been a bit longer than ten minutes and Lagopus is probably waiting for me upstairs with his secretary to go over finances. I have to leave."

"Yeah, go do your job mom." He waved a paw at her as he swung the chair back around to his monitor, claws ready to tap the keys again. "I'll just be here doing mine."

"I love you son." She said, lingering at the opening waiting for his response. After a few moments, she dejectedly left the cubicle and made her way back to the elevator.

He turned around one last time to see her gone and whispered, "I love you too mom."

* * *

 _Savannah Central - Lemming Bros. Bank Corporate HQ – 44_ _th_ _Floor, Executive Offices  
_ _Monday – 13:21 PM – Sunny / Clear Skies_

Murana nearly spit out her third cup of coffee as she entered the bank. The normal sounds of activity met her ears. The gatling guns had already been retracted back into the ceiling with nary a hint of their location to those uninitiated to their presence. She noticed the receptionist chatting away happily on her cell phone, quickly giving her a curt smile and wave. The orderly lines of customers were straight and pristine, with only a few mammals aggravated at the length of the wait. Taking a long sip of her drink, she was intensely curious as to what had occurred while she was gone.

Sweeping through the mass of lemmings, utilizing her instincts to save half a dozen more from unfortunate deaths, she discerned a rather short shape through the opaque glass of her office. Bursting into the room elicited a squeak from the otter who had been busily typing away on her laptop. Beside him was a single cup of coffee that had been mostly drained. The look on his face was that of apprehension and worry.

"Just what exactly are you doing on my computer?" She interrogated, gliding over to the other side of the desk and getting ready to rip the brazen otter from her chair.

He kicked back from the desk to swiftly shift the chair just out of her grasp. It butted up against the wall before he stood up in it and raised both paws. "Boss! Don't get angry, but I advise you to quickly take a look at your screen to see exactly what I'm doing!"

Lingering with a heady glower, she turned to the laptop and scanned the spreadsheets and online web data. The more she scoured, the wider her eyes got. She looked back at the otter, "You did all this?"

He nodded eagerly, "Of course Boss! I'm sorry for hacking into your laptop but you literally gave me nothing to work with here!"

Murana's eyes dropped into slits, "Wait, you had no business being up here to begin with. I asked you to take care of the guns in the lobby. Why are you here?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "Already done, Boss. I called those contractors just like you wanted and I even had them install a brand new control system to prevent accidents like this morning from happening again."

"A new control system?" She probed, slightly suspicious.

"Yes, quite." He clasped his paws behind his back, looking especially pleased with himself. "We now have a DNA filtering system installed at the entrance to the bank that employees and customers alike have to pass through and get scanned. Nobody's in the database yet, but if there is anyone that is on the deny list, the guns will activate and train on them."

She scratched her chin a bit, "Seems a bit underhanded to me."

"Oh, it's a painless and subtle process. The mammals going in and out don't even notice it's happening. Brilliant, I say." He assuaged.

Raising an eyebrow, she shook her head. "That still doesn't answer why you are up here in my office and…what was your name again?" She had completely forgotten from this morning.

"Ronald Latrinae Boss." He repeated.

"I'm not your Boss yet, otter." She stated flatly.

"I did what you asked, which was fix the problem in the front lobby." He smiled smugly.

She pointed a claw at him, "That remains to be seen Ronald. Now answer me, why are you here in my office without permission? Your answer might determine your fate."

Effortlessly disregarding the malicious threat, he mollified, "Please call me Ron. Now, after finishing up with the task you asked of me downstairs, I noticed there was a lot of commotion regarding normal operations here. After doing some poking around, it appears your bank is in a bit of a quandary of sorts."

"One could call it that." She grumbled.

"Right, right…well as I was saying, I knew there was a problem and I figured you'd appreciate me at least trying to help out, being your new executive secretary and all. So I came up to this floor and found that I did not have access to any of the lemmings' computers, not that any trusted me enough to use their tiny workstations. So to discover what the true issue was here, I had no choice but to pick the lock on your door and get into your computer. I do apologize for that, but I had no other resources to work with to help solve the problem."

"So what precisely am I seeing here?" She gestured to the monitor. "Where did this money come from? We did not have this amount available this morning and we shouldn't have it now."

Ronald brought his paws forward again, holding one elbow with the other. "Ah yes, that is…erm…shall we say a bit more underhanded than what I fixed this morning." At a look from Murana, he increased his rate of speech, "Going through your files, I noticed you had three linked offshore accounts filled with money that could be transferred over."

She banged a paw onto the desk, causing the otter to jump in the chair, "Those were not to be touched! That was our buy-out money to allow the bank to limp along a bit longer while we secured more clients and cash inflow to help stabilize the accounts! Why did you get into them?!" She practically roared, causing a few lemmings outside the office to stumble over themselves in their haste to get as far away from her office as possible.

If the otter was fazed by the fierce wolf that would be towering over him if he had been on the ground just feet from her, he didn't show it. "Well, if you'll hear me out Boss, I can explain." He pushed off the window sill to gravitate the rolling, plush chair back to the desk, forcing an irritable Murana to the side as she allowed him to get back to her personal laptop. Gripping the mouse, he navigated a few screens to the offshore accounts. "Okay, you see these?"

"Of course I do!" She retorted, her patience wearing thin.

"Of course." He mimicked. "Well, once I discovered these, I realized this would be the perfect solution to our problem! While we are out securing new clients and reassuring our old ones we are still solvent, we can show them these numbers and get them back into the fold. In fact," he swapped tabs and showed her the current roster of companies investing, "we already got quite a few back just at lunchtime."

Her mood lightened just a hair as she considered the possibilities Ronald was getting at, "But what happens tomorrow after all transactions close out and clear? Will this money stay in the active accounts or what?" She had to admit, the otter was already impressing her with his ability to respond to crisis, even if some of the tactics used were a bit unorthodox.

"Absolutely not!" He chortled, a bit to her irritation. After a few more clicks, "If you see here, once most of our clientele are back onboard Lemming Brothers Bank, we verify that the amount of money returned is the same as what we pulled from the offshore accounts. Once done, we then transfer that money safely back to those accounts and resume normal business operations as usual tomorrow, and no one is the wiser."

"And no one will be short of funds today for any additional purchases!" Her expression brightened as she stared at the screen.

"Brilliant!" He clicked his claws. He turned to her formally, causing her to back up after realizing she was closely reading over his shoulder. "I apologize again for overstepping my bounds, but I couldn't just idly sit by and watch this bank go under." After a moment's pause, he inclined his head back toward her office door, "Did you happen to notice anything else on your way in?"

"Not really." She admitted. She did count a few less lemmings she had to save this time around but didn't really catch on to anything else out of the ordinary.

Stepping out to the main office space, she surveyed the scene and was amazed to find that there was some semblance of order in the chaos that was the lemming work ethic. Lines of patient lemmings were formed just outside the various pipes strewn throughout the room. Hundreds of little, ticking keyboards were heard as the multitudes of employees were legitimately doing their work. No need for threats of violence or rousing growls of encouragement. Just what the heck did the otter do while she was gone?

She took a few steps back before twirling around and shutting the door behind her. She beheld the expectant otter still standing up in her chair for a few moments. "What did you do to my employees?" She marveled.

He nearly bowed but checked himself, "Nothing that a stirring speech of encouragement and a firm hand couldn't fix. Sometimes some positivity is needed along with stern direction, Boss."

"Indeed, I am quite amazed they are so compliant." Cocking her head to the side, the phrase he just uttered resonated with something she could barely remember now. She regarded his face. "You look familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?"

Readjusting the glasses on his face, he smiled, "I don't believe so Boss. I'm just a friendly otter looking for a secure job. Do I have the position?"

Putting a paw to her breast, she had to stifle a giggle. Boy was this guy cheeky! "Well, you certainly went about your interview in a rather bold and innovative way. You were resourceful and adaptive to the situation. Yes, I do believe you'll do, Ron."

Clapping his paws together, he couldn't contain his excitement. "Excellent Boss! I knew you'd see the potential I have!" Hopping down off the chair and backing away a few paces before extending his paws out to it in offering for her to sit, "So what is your first official task? What do you require of your executive secretary?" He rather liked that title and beamed as he said it.

Passing him as she settled back into her seat, she leaned back in it a bit, pondering on the situation. She never really had a fully competent secretary before, nowhere near as ingenious as this otter. She could probably ask anything of him and it'd get done. The possibilities were endless to the point she was almost ecstatic that she could probably get actual work done during the day without having to worry about the place burning down. She needed to calm herself though and not overextend her role as his boss.

Oblivious to her inner thoughts, he cleared his throat. "Boss?"

Shaken out of her reverie, Murana looked him directly in the eyes, "Yes…yes, Ron. I actually want you to continue with what you were doing before I got here. Since you're kind of in the middle of doing it and I'd just be jumping in at the halfway point, I don't think I'm the best mammal to be finishing what you started."

He looked curiously at her and then at the computer, "Do you have another laptop for me to work with or should I continue to use yours?"

She returned her gaze back to the screen in thought, "Yeah, that'd probably be best. I'll have a brand new laptop furnished to you tomorrow morning down at the reception desk when you clock in. For now, you can stay here with me in the office and continue to work and resolve our problem."

"So will I be in the chair or on the floor? I can't really reach up to the top of your desk to work Boss." He reasoned.

Scowling at him, she pointed to a spot on the rug before the desk. "You can bring the laptop down there and work. I'll be in my seat checking on our stocks to make sure they weren't badly affected." This otter really was daring! He had no qualms about expecting more than what was due to him and yet somehow remained likeable to her despite her misgivings about his attitude.

Ronald looked from the floor to her before cracking a grin, "I see. I should have expected Boss. Just hand me down the laptop and I'll get to work on it right away!"

After placing the computer on the floor, the otter unfastened his tie slightly before situating himself comfortably with his back up against the front of Murana's desk. Spreading his legs and placing the device neatly between them, he began happily tapping away on it. Keeping an occasional eye on his progress, she hitched her hind paws up on her desk and began flicking through the stock numbers on her phone, making purchases and sells to further her business revenue.

She grew bored with the stillness of the office, so unused to having the entire bank operation running so smoothly. She got up and walked past Ronald who had a look of consternation on his face, several spreadsheet windows open to his purview. He glanced up as she went past but said nothing, preferring to observe in silence. She opened the office door and scrutinized the lemmings hard at work. She could scarcely believe that this otter had brought them so under heel that there wasn't a catastrophe happening every minute. This was such an alien feeling to Murana that it unnerved her.

Flummoxed, she went back in and shut the door quietly so as to not disturb the critters who probably had little awareness that she was watching them. She reclined back into her chair and turned on the flat panel across the room. It sprung to life with a small hum just as the ZNN news was airing their daily report. She shared a look with Ronald before returning to the television. On the headline news were the two standard anchors: Fabienne Growley, a snow leopard of some fan-boy renown and Peter Moosebridge, a no-nonsense moose who took his job very seriously.

"Today Zootopia was plagued by yet another electrical storm this morning during the wee hours as everyone was in their beds." Peter began. "Several locations of the city are still without power, but officials say that they are working around the clock to get power back online for those affected residents."

"This has been yet the third instance of these storms, and meteorologists are baffled as to why these could be occurring." Fabienne continued. "Although there has been no lasting or impactful damage to the city itself, the power outages are, to many, annoying at best, costly at worst."

Murana muted the station as she bobbed one hind paw over the other, mulling over the top news story of the day. Without looking at him, she spoke out, "Ron, what do you make of these odd storms we've been having every night?"

He looked up from his work to the screen, seemingly absorbed in what he was doing, "Oh…those?" He cleared his throat, "I don't think they're natural. Definitely not something Mother Nature would have made. Maybe there was an electrical fault in one of the Zootopia wall grids that caused this and the mayor is covering it up?"

She tapped her chin a few times, considering his words. "Not too sure myself. I will agree with you on one point however, they are not natural." Clicking her phone off and dropping it in a pocket, she stood up from her chair. "Well Ron, I actually do have a small errand I need to get done before close of business today. You feel like you can handle the fort while I'm gone?"

His face wilted at her words, "You're not staying Boss?"

"Afraid not." She smiled. "Something I promised someone a while back and I need to make good on my promise. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow at 0730. We have a lot of work to do to make up for the disaster that was today."

"Indeed, indeed." He agreed. "From what I'm seeing here, there has been embezzling for years. Whoever was your previous secretary set you up for failure Boss."

Murana barked a laugh, "Figures. I always knew that little shit was up to no good. She was always the best at sucking up though. Please collect as much evidence from those hard drives as you can. We'll go over it in the morning." She waved a paw in the direction of her TV, "The remote is on my desk. You can keep it on if you wish or turn it off at your leisure. Feel free to continue to work in my office until you close up for the night. The procedures should be in a binder in the upper left drawer. Congratulations on your position Ron."

"Thank you kindly Boss! I won't let you down!" He boasted.

"You haven't yet." She winked before waving goodbye and exiting the room.

* * *

 _Downtown - Tail Hollow Orphanage – Happytown District – Corner of Deluge Ave and 34_ _th_ _St.  
_ _Monday – 15:02 PM – Sunny / Sporadic Clouds_

Happytown was honestly a hovel. Sandwiched between the Rainforest District and downtown Savannah Central, the sparse collection of buildings seemed more like an afterthought than an actual planned district of the city. Steaming plumes of smoke dissipated into the air from various chimney spouts encrusted onto the roofs from years of weathering, a product of a bygone era of technology that was cheap enough for the residents of this place to afford.

Murana sidestepped several beggars and sleeping lobos straddling out their filthy bodies across the grimy sidewalks. The noxious fumes hung in the air around the factories that dominated this section of the city. For those who never came here and experienced the happier side of life in Zootopia, this little district would be a culture shock in the extreme. For her, however, it felt almost like coming home to the familiar.

Her destination wasn't something unusual in these parts however; in fact, given the pristine nature of the rest of the city, it was no wonder higher leadership decided to migrate all their forsaken orphans and wretches to this part of town. She located her target dead ahead down a rather mangy street littered with refuse and debris, several cars jacked high with wheels long since stolen. No wonder so many orphans still lived in these parts, no self-respecting citizen would endanger themselves to come here to adopt. There was one orphanage in Tundratown, but that catered mainly to the rich, ironically enough.

Passing by the spinning fans of several ancient air conditioner units hanging precariously out of several low built windows, she strode up the steps to the Tail Hollow Orphanage and rapped on the door several times. Her ears perked up as a gunshot went off several blocks down, but given that another did not follow she knew that she was safe where she was. Presently she heard several locks and deadbolts being unhinged as the door creaked open to reveal a female panther in a black habit peeking out at her through the slit of the opening.

"Murana?" She said relieved, opening the door wider before embracing the wolf in a jovial hug. "It is so good to see you." She glanced up the rickety stairs to the upper rooms. "You here for Max again?" After a nod she raised her hand to the bannister above, "Feel free to take as long as you like. I'm sure he'd be happy to see you again."

"Thank you Matron." She bowed slightly. "Has he asked about me at all?"

The panther beamed, "Oh yes, just this morning actually. You haven't been around for several weeks, he was wondering if you had forgotten about him."

Murana's smile turned to one of sadness, "I could never forget about Max."

The Matron reached out and gripped a paw firmly, gently pulling her back to face her. "When do you plan on filling out the paperwork Murana? I can see plain as day that you want him. It has been over three months. What is holding you back?"

The wolf just stared at the panther for what seemed like an eternity, for that was a question she truly didn't have an answer for yet. "I don't know." She said finally, sending the cat into a rather gloomy expression. "I'm sorry Matron, I just don't feel like I'm ready."

"Well, he is." She responded morosely. She released her and waved a paw up the stairs. "Go. My only advice is to not drag this out any further if the heart is not willing and break his."

Without a word, she bowed her head in acknowledgement before setting foot upon the creaking stairs. Each step expressing a loud cry of protest as her weight was impressed upon them. She could hear some clopping of hooves up above as she ascended the last few steps to the upper balcony, several of the support pillars holding the bannister broken or missing. She rested a paw on the railing and sighed, she was aggrieved at the appalling state of these institutions for children in Zootopia. There should be far more funding put into the future of this city, but was being siphoned off to more frivolous causes.

She was about to open the door leading to the hallway of rooms where Max was, but yelped loudly as the door suddenly opened, nearly smacking her in the face. Before the door stood a rather large tawny-colored wildebeest with a brilliantly long mane of black reaching down to his very chest. His green sweater vest laid over his cyan shirt was swollen from the bulge of his muscular pecks. His dark grey eyes were quite penetrating. If it weren't for the fact Murana was married and had minimal interest in cross-species relationships, she might have made a pass at this fine specimen of savannah prey.

The gnu looked quite startled that she was on the other side of the door. He backed up promptly and nearly stumbled over himself in his haste at being polite. "Pardon me, my lady!" He spoke with a bold tenor in his voice. He held the wooden door open with a hoof as he stepped back into the hallway to allow room for Murana to pass by. "Please do not mind me."

Stunned at this uncanny flourish of proper etiquette and chivalry, Murana smiled at him, nodding at his gesture and striding past, "Thank you…er…"

"Grayz, Ma'am." He raised his free hoof to tip his cap before realizing it wasn't there, making him appear more awkward than he had intended. He let the hoof drop loosely before continuing, "You can call me Ralph, however."

"Thank you for the door, Ralph." She gazed down the hall a moment before looking back to the expectant wildebeest.

"Might I say those are lovely earrings you're wearing." The wildebeest complimented, gesturing to the sparkling pine trees by her ears.

Her paw instinctively went up to one, a bit self-conscious that anyone had noticed them. "Thank you. My son gave these to me this morning."

"He's got good taste! Your son must be a wonderful cub. How old is he?" He asked eagerly.

"He's actually a skunk." She corrected.

"Oh, my apologies. I overstepped and assumed." With that, the conversation died, each looking at the other with the grace of an awkward cow trying to dance.

Trying to alleviate the silence, "You here to adopt as well?" She didn't really recall there being any antelopes or other such youth housed at this particular orphanage.

He brayed slightly at the topic, seemingly embarrassed to be discussing such a thing. He looked nervously down through the slats of the bannister to the front door of the building, as if someone he didn't want to see would come strolling right in and spot him. "I'm just…um…testing the waters. Yeah… just checking to see if I'd be good at handling kids for my future job as a nanny."

She could see through the bald-faced lie but she did not reveal her hand, instead letting the gnu keep his dignity. "Well I'm sure you will be a fine nanny indeed. I can see it already that you have a good heart. Who knows?" She grinned evilly, "I might just look you up in the future for babysitting my kids at some point!"

"Right…um…I'll be sure to keep-" He was interrupted as radio chatter buzzed through the back of his jeans. He gave her a sheepish look before excusing himself and letting the door swing shut before hurrying down the caterwauling stairs. She could faintly hear his conversation as it trailed off outside, "Yes, this is Officer Grayz. Yes Hopps, I am aware I have my first shift tonight…"

Shaking her head in amusement, she padded down the hall leisurely. Her ears darted this way and that as multiple voices and laughter of children could be heard behind various closed doors. At one point, a small cheetah cub barreled out of an entryway on her left, apologizing quickly as he zipped past her to slam the door on her right, followed by a fit of giggles beyond. She was in a different mindset here in this place, more at peace than she had ever been this week. She loved it here.

The door in question was already ajar by the time she got there. She couldn't hear much from out in the hall but she could smell that Max was in there. She gently pressed inward, wincing slightly at the annoying squeak it made as it opened. She could see his huddled form facing away from her on the bed. His striped tail of black, brown and tans was wrapped around his legs, which were bunched up to his chin, head resting on the knees.

Max Thrash was a torch key raccoon of about twelve years that was smaller than most, a runt of the family if you will. He had a tan complexion throughout his fur minus the black paws and the brown tummy, eyes, and muzzle. His eyes of hazel were some of the most breathtaking things Murana had ever seen and was one of the reasons she fell in love with him. He had on a black shirt with a red stripe across the middle and a pair of jeans that had holes torn at the kneecaps.

He did not respond to her entrance and was fiddling with some small stuffed animals that the Matron figured he was interested in. She took a couple steps inside, "Hey Max," she began tentatively, "It's me. Murana. I'm sorry I wasn't able to see you this last week but I'm here now."

"Hi Murana." He caroled back without feeling.

She shut the door quietly and surveyed the room, inspecting the condition of it. There were dust bunnies collecting in the corners and probably monsters under the bed. A few overly used toys were strewn across the floor with no real rhyme or reason for their placement. There was a glass of half-drunken water on his nightstand alongside his bed frame that was made of rotting wood and splinters. She took the chair from beside the nightstand and faced it towards him before smoothing down her suit and sitting down opposite him.

It was then she noticed the bruises and a cut along his eyebrow that seemed rather fresh. She nearly gasped in anger at the sight. "Did you get in another fight again, Max?"

His face moved toward her but didn't quite meet her eye level; instead he concentrated on her hind paws as he talked. "They called me stupid again. Said my last name was trash. I am not trash!" He hiccupped.

"You're not trash Max." She consoled, reaching out a paw to comfort him. The moment it touched his shoulder, he moved back further onto the bed. She managed a weak smile of encouragement before dropping the paw back onto her lap. "I would never think that about you Max. Those kids don't know what they're talking about. You are intelligent. You are smart. You are handsome."

He picked at the claws of his hind paw a few times. "Matron doesn't think so. She grounded me to my room until dinner tonight. She doesn't want the other kids to play with me. She thinks I'm too violent."

"I was a violent kid myself when I was younger." She chuckled, wanting nothing more than to hug this hurting raccoon and soothe his doubts and frustrations. "But we can't always be resorting to violence when the bullies come knocking Max, you know that."

He cradled his head a bit deeper between his two knees, "I know Murana. I know. But they wouldn't stop teasing me. I kept telling them to go away but they'd just keep coming back, saying 'Max is trash! Max is trash!' I just wanted to punch their little faces in!" He gripped his jeans tight, claws digging lightly into his flesh.

This time she didn't let him pull away. She grappled both shoulders and turned him to her. Knowing his condition, she didn't expect him to face her directly or even look her in the eye. As she anticipated, he stared at her left ear as she spoke to him, "You are not trash to me, Max. You have a very special place in my heart and that is something no one can take away from you. I have been looking forward to coming back here to visit you since the last time I left."

"Really?" A smile began to blossom on his face as he regarded her ear more intensely.

"Yes! In fact," she released his shoulders as she dug in her pockets for something. At length she brought out a card and handed it to him. "Here is a library card for the one down the street. You can use this to check out as many books as you want at a time and have free access to any of their listening rooms. I know how you love music."

His mouth dropped open as he flipped the card over and over again in his paws, a claw gently rimming the edge of the card on each flip. "This is for me?" He gaped.

"Mhmm." She hummed, ecstatic that he was receiving his gift so well.

"Thank you Murana." He said, struggling with the words, still in awe at his present.

"If you want, I can come by tomorrow a bit earlier and we can go together to the library and pick out some books to read." She promised, eager to keep this trend of happiness.

His face fell however, "Why not tonight?" He asked earnestly, his eyes briefly darting over hers as he fixated on the other ear.

"I was planning on coming today around lunch, I truly was." She groaned. "Things just got hectic at work today and I really couldn't find the time to get here until now. I promise tomorrow I'll be able to visit you earlier, okay?"

"Okay." He replied numbly, looking back down at his new library card. Without moving, he blurted out unexpectedly, "So why haven't you adopted me yet, Murana?"

She was a bit taken aback by his sudden question. She could not prepare an adequate answer for him. Her thoughts immediately went back to Steven at ZNN. She wanted desperately to have another young cub in the house again but she was starting to doubt if she was even able to properly raise such a responsibility. Would she be doing Max more harm than good by taking him into her home? Would she be neglecting him unintentionally as she did with Steven?

"Murana?" He repeated, this time finally looking into her eyes, if only for a moment.

It was enough to startle her out of her apathy. "I'm sorry, what Max?"

Without missing a beat, "It's clear you want me Murana, or you wouldn't keep visiting me like this. No one else comes to see me but you. If you're not here to adopt me, then what are you here for?"

That was another thing she liked about Max, he was very blunt and forward on everything. She hated the fact that she had to deal with many mammals every day who had ulterior motives and had to deduce what they meant through the words they spoke, but with Max, he said his feelings and thoughts plain as day. His question penetrated right to the heart of the matter. Why was she stalling in adopting him? It was clear she had everything she needed to fulfill the legal requirements.

She had a few moments of hesitation before she could gather the words to speak, "It's complicated Max. There are just a lot of factors in my life right now that are denying me from completing the process. The lack of funds and-"

"You are a bank CEO. You don't have a lack of funds." He fired back without feeling.

She winced as she instantly regretted saying that to him. "Look, it's complicated ok?" She exasperated. "I really want you in my home, but I just can't right now." She was fighting for the words to express her intent. It wasn't that she couldn't take him in or care for him; it was if she could actually give him the due attention he needed.

"Then stop coming here if you're not serious, Murana." He said with sadness, setting the library card on his dresser silently. "I'll be fine. I can take care of myself on my own."

His words tore at her heart. This was twice in one day that those she deeply loved and cared for rejected her. This was truly an awful day. Feeling the tears starting to form at the edges of her eyes, she got up suddenly drawing a bit of a glance from Max. "Well, you can keep the card Max. That is a gift."

"Yeah…" He mumbled, his voice trailing off as he sunk back into his world.

She sighed deeply, "Look Max, give me until tomorrow and I'll see if I can figure out something to…un-complicate my life okay?" It was a bit too late now she realized, he had already retreated into himself again. The silence that greeted her was deafening. "So…I'll see you later Max?"

After a few more moments, she stifled back a sob before turning and shutting the door behind her. She hurriedly made her way down the hall and into the foyer of the orphanage, her mind no longer focused on the present. Max curled himself into a little ball on his bed and began to idly pick at the corner of his pillow. Why did the pain in his chest hurt so much?

* * *

 _The ZNN scene was basically a way to broaden the overall world building as well as continue the central relationship established in the first chapter between Murana and Steven. We continue to introduce new characters throughout the chapter, setting up each piece of the overall puzzle that is the core conflict of the story. I had fun diving a bit more into the newly formed working relationship of both Ronald and Murana, dropping in tons of world building in the process that many won't get until a second read through. We get to the most important part of this chapter, in my opinion, at the Tail Hollow Orphanage where we meet Max. He was someone I truly wanted to get right and according to the owner of his character, I nailed him on the first try through writing his scene. It displayed how much Murana is flawed as a character and how much she wishes she could be better for those she wants to love and will form part of the basis for her transformation as we go through the rest of the story._


	3. Monday - The Un-Standard Grind – Evning

_Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A  
_ _Monday – 18:00 PM – Mostly Cloudy_

Murana was exhausted as she stepped off the elevator to the upper penthouse floor of the Red Lion. The day had been a long one and was filled with disaster and heartache. She wanted nothing more than to just collapse on her bed and sleep until it was time for her evening routine. Unfortunately, she could hear the ruckus from down the hall as she approached her apartment door. She groaned inwardly at the sound of several voices beyond the wall. Her husband was not alone tonight.

Wiping away the remaining tears and trying her best to put on a happy face, she unlocked the door and swung it open to reveal Anthony still in his police blouse and uniform halfway through a bottle of beer with his fellow wolf buddy from the precinct beside him on the couch downing one just like it. She rolled her eyes as she saw the expected mongoose fawning over his partner, her diminutive hands roving over the larger mammal's chest.

"Zoey Javan." She admonished, closing the door a bit harder than intended, "How many times have I told you that my husband's work colleagues are off limits?"

The bushy-tailed mongoose smirked at her with a mischievous glint, "I've lost count Murana." She hiccupped. "Besides, I think he likes me." Murana was almost positive that Anthony's very presence probably prevented Zoey from removing her white tank top and saggy sweatpants. She had obviously slept the entire day away.

Murana shook her head as she dropped the keys into a bowl on the counter by the kitchen. She figured she might as well join them. She opened up the fridge to see two six packs half gone. Pulling a bottle out and popping off the top, she took a swig before joining the merry crew in the den. They were sprawled out on the furniture, the news on the television reporting on mute the newly formed electrical storm happening that night.

She picked up the indignant mongoose and plopped her on the other side of her husband. "You know he's too big for you Zoey. He'd tear you a new one and I highly doubt you'd recover." She took another sip of her beer to hide the fact she was struggling to maintain composure.

"I do what I want, you're not my mom!" The mongoose decried before skittering across their laps back onto her husband's colleague's lap. She was greedily rubbing her cheek back up against the oblivious wolf's chest spreading his leather jacket apart to get at the undershirt. "He's all mine. He even said so!"

"I did?" The wolf looked down at the tiny critter.

Anthony smacked his buddy's arm rather roughly from across Murana. "Yeah Trevor! Don't you remember?" He practically hooted with glee. "You were on your third beer and she asked if you'd marry her!"

"Let me guess…" Murana deadpanned.

"I did?" Trevor repeated dumbly.

"Congratulations." She chuckled, taking another drink. "You two look like you were made for each other."

"I know right? Time to consummate!" Zoey beamed, already trying to unbuckle the poor, confused wolf's pants.

Murana practically smacked the mongoose off the occupied lap. "That's enough. We'll be having none of that here in my own home. You two can take it elsewhere and figure out…how the heck that is even going to work." She couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness of it all.

Zoey Javan was a dear friend and neighbor of the Wolfords. Murana had met the lively thing shortly after living in Zootopia properly for the first time in her life over a decade ago. She could vividly recall that day during the Mongoose Market held at Sahara Square every Sunday where she practically ran afoul of Zoey's legendary temper. In the end, they had become fast friends and ultimately neighbors within a few years' time.

Although Zoey's small apartment door was fixed just outside their own in the hallway a few paces down, her living space literally snaked around the interior of the walls of their own. Sometimes Murana could hear the little thing scamper around in her home at night when it was quiet. The only connection between the two suites was a single oval window on its side perched up along the middle of the wall in the living den. Each tenant had to unlock their side of the glass to have her flow freely in and out of either complex.

"Love finds a way!" Zoey purred, crawling up Trevor's bicep and curling up enticingly by his neck, smushing her cheek onto his.

Leaving the two befuddled newly loves, she turned to her husband with some concern. "So why this little gathering? What are we celebrating? It's the start of the work week and you're already drinking before we even hit evening." She thought for a moment, her eyes wandering over to the schedule on the fridge. "Besides, aren't you on shift tonight?"

"Oh babe!" He chortled, wrapping an arm around her waist as she waved off his alcoholic breath. "A new guy got transferred today, he's covering my shift! Besides, Chief Bogo promoted me to Sergeant today and told me I could have the rest of the day off!"

Murana placed a paw on his thigh, trying to be as supportive as she could, "That is amazing honey! See? I told you dressing nice for your job would bring you better opportunities!"

He barked out his mirth, "Hardly. He could clearly see I had the qualities it took to earn the rank and the responsibility that goes with it!"

Trevor snickered, "Yeah, but he's in charge of only a small team of six!"

She raised an eyebrow at his buddy's lack of support, "That's still better than none." She turned back to Anthony. "I really am happy and very proud of you." She leaned in and quickly gave him a small lick on the muzzle. "You've earned the right to celebrate tonight."

Maybe it was the booze, maybe it was the fact something good was finally happening today for at least one of them, but Murana felt she needed to relax tonight and enjoy the happy moment with her husband. He was quite transfixed at the sudden display of emotion from her. He was far used to having to wring it out of her bit by bit. Both Trevor and Zoey caught on to the impromptu interaction and began giggling like cubs as they teased the two of them about naughty things.

"Whatever." Murana rolled her eyes, taking a big gulp this time. "Is it a crime that I should want to kiss my husband when he does well in his job?"

"Define well." Trevor cackled, holding his sides so much it hurt.

Anthony pointed a claw at him angrily, "You cut that crap off, Trev!" His drunken nature probably getting the better of his reason.

"Easy there everyone!" Zoey stood up suddenly on the wolf's shoulder. "We're just having a good time. So let's just celebrate! More rank means more money! Awooooo!" The little mongoose had started to howl.

"Don't you dare start Zoey!" Murana made a grab for the little critter, but caught nothing but air as the mongoose quickly switched to the opposite shoulder and began to howl again.

"I didn't know mongooses could howl." Trevor was transfixed by the beautiful creature perched just inches away from his face.

"Great idea!" Anthony agreed before howling himself. It wasn't long before Trevor joined in and there was a trio chorus of howls erupting through the early evening.

Murana grit her teeth hard, struggling to maintain a decent sense of control. The urge bubbled within her breast, wanting nothing more than to escape with wild abandon. Trevor stopped briefly enough to encourage, "Come on Murana, you'll feel a lot better when you howl! Awoooo!" He was going off again.

"You know you want to!" Zoey leered, sticking her tongue out before resuming.

"This is your fault. I'm blaming this all on yooooooooooooooo!" Her resistance to the instinctual urge failed and she was consumed by the natural need to howl. Their four voices filled the night and enraged several floors of tenants. The phone was ignored on the hook as they howled for what seemed like hours. As their cries echoed through the building, one could hear several other wolves joining in.

At long last, they finally died down, the adrenaline from the howl still pumping through their veins; Anthony threw a fist into the air, "Yeah, that's what I'm talking about, hun! We're going to let it all out tonight!"

"Preferably in front of us please." Zoey requested with obvious intent.

Although she couldn't deny the euphoric effect howling had on her physical body, she hated the fact that she could lose control like that so easily even if she had trained herself to resist the urge to a point. She slumped back into the couch and glared at the mongoose, "I really hate you right now. You better be glad we're friends."

* * *

 _Downtown - Happytown – Near Tail Hollow Orphanage  
_ _Monday – 21:23 PM – Overcast with Occasional Electrical Currents_

Murana lay awake in her bed, eyes locked onto the ceiling of her bedroom. She could still feel the aftermath of their lovemaking as Anthony lay snoring next to her, completely spent. Despite her not being fully into it as usual, she let him enjoy the moment and feel the satisfaction of ravaging his 'beautiful wife', as he called her. It wasn't often they got to enjoy something so nice these days, so it was a welcome reprieve for both of them.

However, she couldn't rest, not tonight anyway. She lay motionless in the bed, staring at the picture of the two cubs in the red wagon for what seemed like hours on end. Satisfied that the husband was not going to wake up anytime soon, she slipped out of bed, flinching at the soreness in her thighs as she stood up on the grass floor. He sometimes got a bit rough when he was drunk, but tonight for once, she didn't mind.

Drinking the booze was probably not the smartest thing for her to do tonight. She needed to clear her head. Walking out into the living den, she was a bit taken aback by the fact that Trevor and Zoey were still here. She was about to go back and get clothed when she realized they were sound asleep, Zoey atop Trevor's abdomen, in the wake of their own aftermath.

"You've got to be kidding me…" She said mystified at the audacity of her neighbor. She was going to have to force that little bugger to clean the damn place up.

Sighing at her uncontrollable friend, she swept past them into the kitchen and pulled out a pitcher of cold water from the refrigerator. After pouring a glass and drinking it down, she opened up the side pantry door and walked into the small alcove with barred racks bolted into the walls. She knelt down to pick up a few jars of tomato juice before setting them on the counter next to the microwave. She would need these in a bit when she got back later that evening.

Walking over to the front door, she picked up her wallet she had put down next to the key bowl and sifted through it. Finding what she was looking for, she pulled out the small sheet of crumpled paper and began to snap up the clutch. As she set it back down, she jingled the key bowl slightly which caused the mongoose to stir behind her.

Looking up dazed, she mumbled incoherently, "Murana? What you doing up naked?" Lazily waving her arm back towards something random behind her, "You wanna join in this hotness?"

Smiling at her incorrigible friend, she whispered, "No Zoey. Just lay your head back down and get some sleep."

"Good idea." She dropped her head with a small tap back onto Trevor, who barely moved at the touch.

Shifting back into her bedroom, she shut the door tightly and locked it. Walking over to the verandah to read the paper in what little light was provided from the outside, she concentrated hard on what it said:

 _Mom (scratched out), Murana,_

 _Christopher told me that a new drug deal was going down tonight at 2200 in Happytown near the Tail Hollow Orphanage. I'm sure you are familiar with that place because Christopher told me he sees you go there. Your target of interest will also be there overseeing the deal and should be easy to bring to justice. If you're reading this, then you ignored my plea to stop and I'll be hearing about it tomorrow morning of his death. This will be the last time I help you. Please don't call me again or show up at the coffee shop tomorrow. I won't be there._

 _Sincerely, Steven Stinkman_

She crumpled it back up again as she shook in grief and rage at what her son had written to her. On one hand, she was furious at him for cutting her off completely from him, but on the other she totally understood his position and knew that she had hurt him deeply by continuing this course of action. However she couldn't stop, not until they were avenged. She unfurled it once more and reread it, curious the second time through about Christopher and why and how he'd know of her visits to the orphanage. Wasn't he just a reporter like Steven at ZNN? Was he following her?

She didn't have the time to dwell on that thought right now. Time was wasting. She set the piece of paper in the groove of her shredder plugged into the wall inside the closet to remind herself to shred it in the morning before flexing her legs and using the small space to perch her feet on opposing walls to climb up to the ceiling. Pushing up on a slightly visible square that was cut out, she pushed the piece aside and reached up into the dark recess to pull down a rather bulky bundle of clothing. Resetting the panel back into the groove of the ceiling, she hopped down to the grass lightly, careful to not make a sound.

Held in her hands was a suit that she had custom tailored to fit her body by Billy Silva, her supplier and confidant. Unzipping the blood red suit from the front, she quickly slipped her legs in, pulling it up over her waist before reaching back around to unhook the opening for her tail so she could stick it through. Kneeling on both knees, she leaned back before placing one arm through one black sleeve and then the other. Flipping the collar up over her shoulder blades, she finished the main portion by zipping it back up to the neck.

She adjusted and clicked in the maroon bulletproof pauldrons on either shoulder before getting a spindle of hospital wrap to encircle her forearms and elbows. The less wolf fur she could expose to the stench, the better. She buckled the gauntlets on either arm, ensuring the claw extenders rested perfectly across each paw finger. She then began to put on the boots, their soles open to allow freedom of sense and touch for her pawpads.

Taking a small bottle from a bag that Anthony ignored daily, she sprayed a thin coating of stench from Steven onto her clothes, arms, legs and face. The acrid odor stung her nostrils something fierce but she was intensely familiar with her son's scent and the effect passed quickly. She shivered slightly at the procedure, but knew it was necessary to mask her scent from those who could recognize it during the day. She looked into the bag for more to realize there was not a single bottle left of the pungent liquid. Guess she would have to visit Billy tomorrow to get more.

Buckling on her utility belt, complete with gold plating on the front, she paced over to the mirror in their room. She regarded herself intensely. Was it this that Steven saw the other night? Did he not know this was who she was? What was she to Steven now? A mother or some abomination who he had thought was his mother? Shaking her head angrily, she placed the mask onto her face just above the muzzle, allowing the small adhesive to stick to the fur between her eyes to cover up her identity.

This is me, she thought. This is what the city needs. This is what Zootopia needs. With firm conviction, she took one last look at Anthony, sleeping soundly in their bed, one arm stretched out over where she had once been. With a mournful look, she silently stepped out to the verandah and surveyed the city. Her focus landed on Happytown several miles away, its forgotten section devoid of most of the city lights the rest of the districts shared.

Taking a deep breath, she leaped off the balcony, closing her eyes to embrace the feeling of the wind whipping through her fur. Plummeting down the stories of the Red Lion, she was internally counting in her head. After a few seconds, she reached down to her belt, depressing a button on the buckle to unleash a small grappling hook. Arching her head back to look at the building opposite her, she gripped the roped hook and began twirling it in mid-fall.

Thrusting her arm out towards the opposite structure, it connected with a distended flagpole three floors up from the ground level. Repressing the button yanked her towards the panes of glass, revealing the interior within. She flipped in the air to hit the side hind paws first before letting the inertia of the swing propel her forward, her feet literally running across its surface.

At the apex of her upward momentum, she hit the button a third time, unlatching the hooks from the pole and zipping just the cord back into her belt. Simultaneously leaping off the skyscraper, she vaulted towards the nearest building, clicking her claws once to engage the extenders above her paws. She smacked into the siding, the metal tips digging holes into the material. Without losing a breath, she scrabbled quickly up the side, her metal appendages assisting in the climb.

Cresting the top of the building, she leaped over the edge and launched into a dead sprint across its slanted paned surface. She took each building at a time, calculating in advance the route she would need to reach the one after and the trajectory of her jumps. Reattaching several spare hooks from her belt pouch to the rope, she launched herself across gaps utilizing the arcing swing to clear distances she couldn't normally.

At length she hit the top of a roof just on the outskirts of Happytown. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop, she dipped inside a stairwell of one where she climbed up a corner of the room to collect a small bundle she had placed there months ago. Other such similar bundles existed across the city that she had placed specifically for instances like this. With package in paw, she continued her journey to just a block away from the Tail Hollow Orphanage.

With a small pant, she sat down with her back resting up against the roof guard. She rebuked herself for feeling a bit winded from the exertion. She needed to exercise more. She was still too young to be feeling this tired. Unpacking the bundle she had collected, she unhinged all the pieces and began assembling it into a rather lightweight rifle complete with sniper scope. It wasn't bulky, and its purpose was intended for non-lethal dart rounds rather than a heavier stock of ammunition.

Now prepared, she turned around and got into position with her sights aimed squarely at the building entrance three doors down from where Max was most likely sleeping. She gave his window a quick glance to see that it was still dark. She smiled sadly before refocusing back on the target location. She was about five minutes early from the drop time, but she would be ready.

A small stinging of her nose from an unusual scent diverted her attention from the doorway in question. The storm clouds were getting closer, hovering just over Tundratown. Even from this distance, she could see past some of the skyscrapers to where the bulk of the electrical activity was blasting through the sky. She furrowed her brow as she gauged its rough location to be just over Pale Moon Orphanage in that district. She reminded herself to check in there later tomorrow to see if everything was alright.

Her ears flicked back to the disturbance below as she saw several mobsters in brown trench coats shuffle out from the building. The usual assortment of cats ranging from tigers to lions to lynxes, all members of the Felicity Firmament; a ridiculous name for an all-feline gang that had multiple strangleholds in sectors across the city specializing in drugs. Her ears wilted slightly as she did not see her target of interest.

They snapped back to attention, however, when an ocelot exited the structure with a plush trench coat of tan and what looked like real wool on the interior. She sneered as the spotted cat walked among the taller felines with pompous arrogance. He waved a few times to several of his companions to flank him as they awaited the other party for the drop.

Murana calmly breathed through her nose as she trained her eye down the scope at his despicable face, a scar running down the length of his nose and trailing through his lips. As much as she wanted to plug a dart into his neck, she needed him separated from the rest of the group so she could more easily dispatch him. Having his contingent of minions around would be far more problematic and would not make this job easier.

As she and the cats below heard the white van coming down the street, a small movement out of the corner of her eye distracted her. She saw a brief flicker of grey and black in the opposing window on the eighth floor. Someone was in the apartment directly across, most likely looking at her through the open window. She gauged if she should call off the hit but shook her head in determination; this mark was very elusive and this was as good an opportunity as she was going to get. She re-aimed down the barrel.

The van had pulled to a stop just alongside the curb. She could hear from this distance a window being rolled down. She cared little for what they had to say to each other, just that she could get an opening on the ocelot. The cat moved behind the cover of the vehicle, blocking him from sight. She was patient and waited for him to reappear.

As it seemed the deal was just about done, she was ready to take aim again when she heard a few of them rise up in shouts. She whipped the scope to the right to see some weird looking fox in an orange hoodie and sweatpants bounce off of several of the bigger cats' heads. Her barrel followed this unknown assailant as he brutally whipped around the felines with ease, tripping some and hind kicking others into submission. Murana cursed softly with thoughts of losing her prey because of this idiot vigilante.

Her eyes narrowed to slits when she saw her quarry break off from the group and begin running towards Tail Hollow. Seizing her chance, she aimed quickly and fired. The bolt went off with nothing but a puff as it zipped through the air, aimed perfectly at the back of his head. It would have connected had it not been for his sudden turn into an alley, causing the paralyzing dart to hit the sidewalk pavement uselessly.

Swearing loudly, she dumped the rifle on the rooftop and sprang off the side of the building. She extended her metal claws as she hit the opposing building's window frame. Unlatching from the brick, she quickly leapt down from each outcropped sill to ground level where she broke into a run. She hadn't even fired the gun more than seconds ago when she was turning the corner and enveloping herself in the darkness of the alley.

The ocelot had not gotten far as she could see he was stuck between the brick façade and a fence barrier for the backyard playground of the orphanage, its outer border extending too close for him to squeeze through properly. With rumbling anger, she gripped her claws deep into his flamboyant jacket before ripping him from the small opening and flipping him over her shoulder. The coat slipped off of him in midair, still clutched within her paws. He hit the ground hard, drawing a small moan of pain.

Casting the worthless coat aside, she rounded on him, fangs bared. "You have been extremely hard to find Javier Sanchez!" Without giving him any respite to collect himself, she kicked him hard in the chin, flipping him into a somersault before smacking his face back into the grime and filth of the asphalt.

"Argh…you stupid bitch!" He roared, cradling a bloody nose from that last impact. "Who are you? Do I know you?" Without pausing to wait for an answer he pulled a gun out of his teal vest and fired at her.

Recognizing the motion to his breast, she was already to the side ducking low to disorient his aiming. The shot blast rang out in the stillness of the night, audible only to the incoming electrical storm. She surged in low before digging her metal claws deep into his gut, causing him to whine pitifully. Completing the momentum, she leaned in with her elbow to bring him to the ground. He instinctually went into fight or flight mode as his hind paws came up and began to scratch her abdomen mercilessly. She cried out in shock as the claws ripped through the multiple layers of her outfit and sliced through her skin.

Murana staggered back, holding a paw to her stomach, pulling it away to reveal fresh, dripping blood. She perked up as he was scrambling on all fours towards the gun that had been kicked away. Unwilling to have him get the upper hand, she mounted him swiftly, putting her entire weight on his back as she pressed him into the ground. She wrapped an arm around his neck before yanking up with the other paw to close off his airway.

Javier had a lot of fight still left in him. Snubbing the pain that was scorching his face, he used every ounce of his strength to crawl mere inches towards the gun, his left arm stretching out to just touch it, inches out of his grasp. He howled in rage as he realized he wouldn't be able to fight against the superior strength of the wolf. Raising her arm high she raked it down into his eyes, drawing a blood-curdling scream as she gouged them out.

Stomping on his spine viciously, she rose up off of him, allowing him to stumble and collapse several times on the ground before her. He shrieked and yowled at his wounds, jamming his paws into his eyes to make the misery stop. Calmly reaching into her belt pouch, Murana pulled out a small, secondary dart round and held it firmly in her paw. She advanced towards him slowly, taking care to keep some distance from him until she could get a good opening in-between his rolls.

Ramming it into his neck, she pushed the plunger on the dart to release the toxin deep into the cat's bloodstream. Within moments, his movements slowed and then ceased entirely. Casually rolling him over onto his back and moving his head to face her, she serenely rolled her left wrist over to uncork the top of some tubing that ran the length of her interior sleeve. Pressing a button with a paw finger on her right, viscous liquid came out of the end of the tube just at the wrist, coating the entirety of the ocelot's body. Her ears flickered at the sound of impending police sirens, but she felt she had enough time for this.

"This is a rather curious wax that retains its liquid state." She began to explain with some satisfaction. "When burned, it has the capability of maintaining the flames for days without ever giving off much light or any visual cues of its existence." She seemed rather proud of this fact; all the more reason to use it since it attracted very little attention should a bystander be passing by the alley.

She went to one knee before rolling back onto her haunches, taking in the soothing feeling of being able to sit finally. As if talking to a friend, she wrapped her arms around her raised knee before flexing out her other leg to get a few kinks out. Turning her head to regard him, she continued, "You may not know me Javier Sanchez, but I know you. I know Fresia Lorian and Tyler Mason. That single mother jaguar and her young son whom you brutally raped, mutilated and killed."

If Javier had the ability still of widening his eyes with fear, he would have surely done it. "Now you will feel the flames of their justice as you endure your punishment Javier." She coolly judged as she rolled over the right wrist and popped off the opening.

She stretched out her left hand and was about to press the button to release flames from below her wrist when a familiar voice behind her halted her movement. "Hands up right where I can see them! Don't you dare reach for a weapon or I will shoot!"

Closing her eyes in contempt she slowly rose up to full standing height, arms out to the sides. She had to admit, she did not hear the rabbit coming. They probably parked their cruiser back at the scene of the drop and were alerted to the skirmish in the alley by perhaps a local resident who had heard the gunshot. She had little doubt the eager bunny had come running over to see what was amiss, no wonder she was taken by surprise.

As expected, she saw Officer Judy Hopps pulling her vest up to her mouth to speak into a radio. "All units, we have an unidentified…" She struggled with the proper terminology. "masked wolf caught in the process of killing a civilian. Request back-up now."

"You don't want to do this." Murana reasoned peaceably, her voice level. "Just turn around and forget that you saw this." She knew it was futile, but she had to give the rabbit a chance.

"Not buying it, miss! Hands up where I can see them!" The bunny shouted, pointing her gun closer towards her when she saw Murana lower her right arm back down to Javier.

Officer Nick Wilde and a new recruit she thought she recognized ran up alongside Judy. "What in blazes? Who is that?" The fox exclaimed, his eyes bulging.

"I thought you knew everyone." Judy jibbed, but kept her serious gaze on the wolf.

"You wouldn't happen to be…the Dark Flame Wolf would you?" Nick marveled as he actually waved at her. "Pleased to finally make your acquaintance. It's not every day I meet a notorious vigilante!"

"Officer Wilde, I do not believe this is the proper time to be making friends with the enemy." The wildebeest admonished. Remembrance slammed into Murana as she recalled Ralph Grayz from the orphanage. He was the new transfer and had taken Wolford's shift tonight! She inwardly breathed a sigh of relief that he wasn't here to see her like this.

"Well Carrots." He said standing with his paws on his hips. "Now I can say I officially 'met' everyone in Zootopia."

"Can it, Nick." She made a motion with her paw to Murana. "Turn around and put your paws behind your back. Officer Grayz, can you detain this…wolf please?" Keeping the gun trained on her, Judy nodded to the gnu.

"Certainly." He smiled, flipping out a pair of pawcuffs and a muzzle before advancing on Murana.

Playing along for a brief time, Murana held out her paws without complaint, hearing the clopping of hooves get closer. He was almost upon her. The jingling of the cuffs was heard as he opened up the racks. Quickly crouching low, she did a forward flip ensuring that her hind paws hit the underside of the gnu's chin, snapping his neck back hard. Landing back on the ground just beyond Javier, her wrists were in prime position.

"Goodbye Javier." She cooed before pressing a button and igniting the ocelot. The barely visible flames spread quickly across his body, unseen to most eyes, but the results on the cat were clearly evident.

"How did she?" Nick looked to Judy before shifting back to Murana. "Did she just?"

Another gunshot went off as Judy fired a round at the wolf. Murana was off and running, reaching the top of the fence with a single bound before clicking her metal claws back out and crunching them deep into the brick. Within moments she was up to the rooftops and was leaping from building to building.

Ralph was just recovering from the assault as he came up sputtering, "What in blazes is wrong with that wolf?"

"Ralph!" Judy commanded, holstering her gun and running past him towards the fence. "Follow us on foot through the streets, I'm going to try and get her down to your level! Nick, try to extinguish the body and get him to a hospital!"

With an impressive display of parkour, Judy hit the dividing fence bar once before launching herself back and forth between the two buildings and reaching the top. She stopped briefly, her nose twitching and her ears twirling. She easily detected the sound of the wolf escaping off to her left. With her target sighted, she dashed off in hot pursuit. "All units, all units. This is Officer Judy Hopps in Happytown with a 217. I am engaged in a foot chase on rooftops heading in the direction of Savannah Central. Converge on my GPS location."

Without another word, Ralph was already running past Nick, his eyes to the sky as he tracked the two dark silhouettes across the rooftops. "Okay guys! I'll just…figure out how to put out the fire here." Nick trailed off as he turned back to the raging pyre that was the ocelot. He didn't even have a fire extinguisher on hand.

Murana had already reached the high rises of Downtown Central when Ralph realized he could not keep up with the two as he was. He shook his fluffy mane angrily as he brayed, "I cannot believe that you're forcing me to resort to this! Arrogant, pompous vigilante!" Taking off his police blouse to reveal the swollen wife beater shirt underneath, he collapsed to all fours and began galloping through the streets of Zootopia, avoiding any lingering night-owl pedestrians and cars.

Murana was within range of the ZNN tower, hoping to lose the bunny on its awkward surface. Without proper equipment, the cop would have no firm footing and plummet to the ground below. She had begun to hook up a third grapple attachment to her belt wire when the bunny caught up to her on her right. With a running leap, she crashed into Murana with her hind feet with the force of a piston.

"Stop in the name of the law!" Judy exhaled.

The impact threw the wolf off the edge and down to the streets below. Recovering fast, Murana slapped her claws into wall, its metal appendages squealing in protest at the friction put upon them. She hadn't even gone several meters when the tips broke off and she began her downward velocity again. Extending her unbroken hand covering, she snagged onto a building outcropping, having it slip between her paws as she hit the next windowsill below before slamming into the dumpster perched just alongside the storefront. A tearing feeling could be felt off her left ear, but she had little time to acknowledge that injury among many.

She groaned miserably as her aching body rolled off the dumpster to the ground with a thump. Shaking off her confusion, she was about to stand tall when Ralph rammed into her side, slapping her back up against the same trash bin. She cried out, tears coming to her eyes from the excruciating throb shooting up and down her sides. She crumpled to the ground, completely wracked with pain all over.

"You ignorant, self-righteous fool!" Ralph thundered, pointing his hoof at her. "No one is above the law, even if executing self-proclaimed justice!"

Judy hopped down from above, dusting her paws off as she saw that the situation appeared to be handled. Fellow sirens were blazing in from multiple corners of Savannah. They would converge upon this location within seconds. "Settle down Ralph. I think we got her."

Feigning unconsciousness, Murana manipulated her arm, which her body had rolled over, towards her belt to the left pouch, which contained just one grenade. As the rabbit got closer to her, she lifted her entire body weight with one paw before spinning her legs in a wide arc, tripping the little officer onto her rump. With the other paw, she flicked off the activation lever on the bomb and tossed it at the wildebeest. It exploded with mild concussive force, blasting the gnu onto his side. Within moments, the entire air around them was consumed in a cloud of noxious gas.

"What the heck is that!" Rhinowitz shouted as he pulled up and got out of the car, trying his best to hold his nose and get right back in.

Judy hacked her lungs out, lurching forward on all fours. "It's skunk spray!" She exhaled, her lungs were on fire. Her noise burned like the heat of a thousand suns. She was in agony.

Shutting the door swiftly, Rhinowitz got on the radio, "All units, we have a 10-53. Two officers down, please assist."

The last thing Ralph could manage to utter before passing out from the stench was, "Where did that wolf go?"

* * *

 _Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A  
_ _Monday – 23:54 PM – Overcast with Occasional Electrical Currents_

It had taken nearly an hour longer to get home that evening. Murana pitched inward into her suite, shivering and miserable. She had doused herself in a running fountain just outside the central roundabout in front of ZPD headquarters to remove the reeking smell of skunk. It still lingered on her outfit and exposed fur however. Noiselessly shutting the glass door to her balcony, she bolted through her bedroom to avoid having the persistent scent disturb Anthony to the point he'd wake up and find her like this.

Cursing herself for leaving the stupid tomato juice cans out on the counter, she whipped into the living den and snatched them before leaping into the bathroom just off the master bedroom. She thought she heard a squeak from the couch, but decided it best to just get into a place of safety to undress and shower. She had not expected to use her smoke bomb tonight. In fact, this night did not go at all according to plan like it usually did.

Finally secured and locked into the rather robust wash closet, she whimpered as she cast off the mask to the floor and unzipped the front of her suit. She breathed in rapid gasps, whining at the pain of gingerly unfurling her top off her wounds across her stomach. The lacerations had temporarily glossed over with a bright red film but were still very much fresh. The throbbing in her sides was reaching an unbearable pitch. She would probably be limping around the rest of tomorrow after this.

It was a laborious process of removing each article of clothing and utility, but she managed to do it. She had to contain her small moans of pain as she rubbed the tomato juice all throughout her fur to remove the scent of skunk. She clapped a paw over her mouth as a yelp escaped when the acid from the juice hit her cuts. Grimacing at the sound of a body moving in the next room, her mind spun trying to think of some story for cover.

"Babe? You here?" Anthony was still half asleep.

"Yeah! I'm here!" She called out from the bathroom.

"Is everything all right? It smells awful." He commented, drawing a few skips of the heart from Murana.

"Yeah…I'm fine!" She blurted out. "I just ate something really bad tonight. It's really going through me!"

"Okay, well just spray good before you come to bed, okay?" He mumbled before flopping back over onto his side and passing right back out.

Relieved that one disaster was averted, she continued to massage the juice throughout the rest of her body. She flipped the shower on and left to let the water get warm before attending to her outfit. She wrinkled her nose at the putrid odor her senses could see visibly rising up from the suit. She opened a towel cabinet and took out a plastic bag before stuffing all of them into the scent proof container. She'd have to launder these tomorrow in an offsite location to avoid suspicion. She probably would have to get Billy to stitch up the front however.

A small glint in the mirror over her vanity caught her eye while walking towards the now-hot shower. Her pupils dilated as she realized what it was. She bunted up against the counter, leaning close towards the mirror to see a small tear in her left ear where an earring had been. Her right pine tree-shaped earring was still intact. Did she not remove them before leaving that night? Was it dropped somewhere during the scuffle? It had even lost its perfect smell!

Angrily taking the remaining piece out, she tossed it in the bag with the rest of her stuff. She'd just have to have Billy discretely dispose of that piece when she saw him tomorrow. She stood there gripping the sides of the vanity, on the verge of tears. That was a present to her from her son, and she went and lost one piece tonight because she was too stupid to bother remembering to remove them before heading out.

Whapping a fist hard into the counter, she moved to the shower and rinsed both the smell and the juice out of her fur, the scalding water actually pacified her wounds. Stepping out, she rubbed herself down with a towel, dabbing the parts where she hurt. Positive she had hidden the bundle of stinking clothes up into the ceiling nook in the closet well enough. She replaced the panel and hopped back down.

Murana rolled into bed beside her husband, delicately wrapping an arm around him. Listening to his snores, she thought on what a terrible day it had been. Her company was still tittering on the verge of bankruptcy unless that otter could actually fix things, her most loyal assistant tried to kill her, her own son practically disowned her, Max not wanting anything to do with her unless she's serious about adopting him, and now losing one of Steven's earrings while accomplishing a botched mark.

It really had been a shitty day. Maybe she should fix things with Steven tomorrow; maybe he hadn't meant what he wrote in that letter, and she'd seem him again at Snarlbucks. She could also make good on her promise to Max as well. Tomorrow will be a better day, she told herself. She curled up closer to Anthony, pulling the covers tighter around her neck. Within seconds she was gone, with nothing but the rumblings of the electrical storm raging outside their windows filling up the silence of the room.

* * *

 _After setting up a few more additional characters to the reader for them to keep track of at the start of the chapter, we finally get to the real meat of it and the primary draw for Murana's character, her vigilante exploits in Zootopia. I knew I needed to get the entire sequence down perfectly - Since this was the main draw of her character to many a reader or fan of her artworks: this initial exploit of her going out to hit a mark was essential to get just right. It was planned meticulously to showcase exactly just how deadly and efficient she was. However, to subvert expectations, I also made her partially fail at the task by having a third element enter her usual routine and completely derail everything, thus enabling me to work in more canon characters back into the story and further cement it's place in the Zootopia universe. It was most fun setting up all the little plot macguffins throughout this portion that will come back to bite Murana in the butt. In the end, I feel this was a most satisfying way to end our first day with our new protagonist._


	4. Tuesday - A Darker Forecast - Morning

_Savannah Central – The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A  
_ _Tuesday – 05:58 AM – Overcast Skies / Light Sprinkles_

The stifling incense permeating the air was blocking her senses, creating a fog that clouded her mind and suppressed her unbridled panic at being in this place. She could hear the chanting down the dark stairs, lit only by candlelight. Her mother was roughly pushing her down the steps, nearly tripping her several times. She reached the bottom and continued to nervously hold the candle she was forced to carry herself, taking extra care not to let it go out for fear of having them punish her again.

A paw tightly gripped her shoulder and she was abruptly turned into a large basement room where the source of the incantations was originating. Multiple mammals of varying shapes, covered from head to toe in black robes, stood in a circle around a central altar built from wood. Each one was holding their own light and continuing the droning as they brought her to the forefront of the group. She was smaller than most of the participants here, being a young pup herself.

The group parted way for her and her mother, revealing a small wolf pup roped down to the legs underneath the table, struggling to free himself, but to no avail. Her heart wanted to go out to her brother and tell him it would be all right, but she was kept rooted to the spot by the firm hand of their mother. A larger canine stepped forward from the rest and the chanting ceased as the two pups stared at each other in petrified terror.

"May the ceremony commence my brethren." The deep voice resounded, pointing first to the fox next to him.

"Mommy?" The female pup quivered. "What is he going to do to him?"

Her question was greeted by silence. Her eyes were rapt on the figure before her as the fox split his robe open to reveal his form. The pup's eyes grew wide as she saw what was about to happen. She screamed and cried in unison with her brother as each mammal in the group took turns. She twisted and writhed in her mother's grasp, requiring an additional set of paws to keep her in place as her heart yearned to be with her brother. At long last it was finally over, both siblings crying together in their separate places.

The larger wolf signaled his mother to move the young female forward. "My dear." He intoned gruffly. "You may baptize your brother in the holy water that bonds this covenant together."

Sniffling, she looked up to the wolf and then back to her mother who stood expressionless, giving her nothing but a nod to continue. She hesitantly padded over to her brother, taking a shaking paw into her own, their tears melding together. "It's okay little brother. I'm here now. I'm going to wash your wounds and make it all better." She lowered her voice so that only he could hear her, his eyes focused solely on hers. "And we're going to run away from this place, just you and me."

Taking the proffered container of water, she began pouring it over him. Her nose became irritated as she was halfway done with pouring the liquid onto her brother. It was more viscous than water, and it had a pungent odor. She had halted the pouring when a paw tipped hers and sloshed the remainder all over him. Taking her firmly by the arm, her mother pulled her back into the circle of mammals.

"Mom!" She whined. "That isn't water! What are we doing? Let him go!"

Without a second to prepare herself, the lead wolf threw a lit match onto her brother. Her blood-curdling wail pierced the night as Murana rose up screeching from her bed, Anthony being thrown off the mattress as Trevor and Zoey burst into the room at her awakening. She was frantically thrashing through the bed sheets, getting further tangled up in them as she was screaming for them to get off of her.

Anthony was upon her in a second, grasping for her shoulders to shake her awake, deftly avoiding her claws as she swiped about trying to attack anything that drew near. "Baby! It's me! Anthony! Murana, wake up!" He shook her vigorously.

Her eyes snapped open, seeing nothing but a male wolf looking down at her, a mixture of concern and determination in his eyes. She snarled loudly before thrusting him off of her and pouncing on him, her claws trying to maul his face. It took all of Trevor's strength to hold Murana back from killing her husband. Zoey scrambled up Trevor's leg and arm before leaping onto Murana's shoulder and smacking her hard in the muzzle. It seemed to work, as her focus shifted to the tiny mongoose, and the haze of murderous intent left her eyes.

"Murana!" Zoey chastised, "Get your shit together!" She propped her fists on her hips, looking rather perturbed at the wolf for having disrupted her beauty sleep atop her hunky Trevor.

Murana immediately sagged in Trevor's arms as she was taken to the bed to lie down, a massive headache suddenly springing to life in her skull. The wounds from the night before began to flare up with a vengeance as she began to moan in agony at the throbbing pain coursing through her body. She rolled over onto the bed to bury her face into her pillow, wanting nothing more than to sleep the rest of the day away. Her day was not so kind.

Climbing back up onto the bed from the floor, Anthony put a comforting arm around her waist, scooting in a bit to better spoon her side as he whispered lovingly, "Another bad dream again, hun?"

She shook her head into the pillow, "They're getting worse."

His expression looked pained; he felt useless and unable to help his wife. "I could talk with the chief and see if he could let you come in and talk to our counselor. They do have a family and friends program we could use."

Murana moved her head slightly so she could be heard better, "Don't worry about it. I'll be fine. It's just a dream after all."

"Yes, but it's not going away…" He then noticed her wincing as he slid his paw up and down her ribs. "Babe, you hurt? Was I too rough with you last night?"

Not wanting to shift onto her back and reveal the stomach lacerations from Javier, she raised her snout just above the pillow, "Nothing that won't heal by the end of the day." She did her best to grin at him, fighting back the urge to leap away from him as he continued to apply pressure to her back.

He looked up from her, satisfied that she was at least okay, and noticed their two friends stark naked beside the bed staring at them. He waved a paw off in their direction, "Go on, get dressed you freaks!" They both smirked as they saluted, Zoey hopping into Trevor's arms and allowing him to carry her out of the room. Anthony called out to them with sincerity as they passed the threshold, "Thanks again guys for helping me with her."

"No problem!" Trevor shouted back.

"Think you'll make it through the day today, Murana?" He expressed genuinely, switching to her formal name for once, which caught her attention immediately.

She held his gaze, "Yeah, I'll be all right."

Consternation developed on his muzzle as he regarded her, "I really wish you would open up to me. I'm your husband. That's what I'm here for." He gave her the best puppy dog eyes he could muster.

She snickered into the pillow at his attempt at giving light to the serious situation. "You goof…" She looked over her shoulder at the door where her friend Zoey had departed. "Is it too much to ask for you to brew me up some coffee? That might make me feel better."

His laidback demeanor returning, Anthony slapped a paw on her ass, giving a nice squeeze to the base of her tail. Oblivious to her grimace at the pain he had caused, he hooted, "Of course babe!" He gave her a wiggle of his brow and a knowing look, "Maybe some white chocolate macadamia?"

She couldn't help but share his mirth at his eagerness to get back into the sack with her before the day had even begun. She pushed him by the muzzle away from her, "Get out you big lug and go make my coffee!"

Anthony chuckled as he bounced off the bed and walked over to their bamboo closet, shifting the curtain aside to pick out his uniform for the day. He sniffed a few times before remarking, "Hey honey, did you forget to spray in the bathroom last night? It smells really bad over here."

Her head shot up from the pillow. She gawked over at him to see him exploring the closet with his nose. A small bubble of panic formed in her gut that he'd find her suit. She belted out a bit more forcefully than she would have liked, "I'm sorry! I completely forgot to do it last night. It was late and I just wanted to get some sleep. I'll take care of it before I leave."

Wrinkling his nose, he shook his head. "That's gross, honey." He turned back to his uniforms and had a paw hovering over one of his casual t-shirts. After a moment to think, he moved to his formal blouses and pulled one out, thinking it was probably best to look professional for his wife like she had asked.

Murana could hear the shuffling of her friends out in the den getting dressed and hopefully cleaning up their own mess. Limping over to the closet herself, she put on a fresh set of garments and a loose fitting suit that would lay easier on her fur so as to not aggravate the injuries. Confident that she looked presentable, she did her best to stand tall as she swept into the main living space.

Trevor was already tightening the buckle on his pants before flipping a jacket over his arms and pulling them through in one smooth motion. "Well Tony, I'll be heading into work in a half hour after I get washed up at home. See you in the station later." He cast a glance at the still naked mongoose, who was leering at him the entire time he got dressed. "You got my number?" She nodded leisurely, prompting a sheepish grin from the wolf as the other two stared at this exchange. "Call me."

With an abrupt straightening of posture, he saw his way out, letting the penthouse door close gently behind him. Murana walked past Zoey, giving her a small whap on the back of her head, "Would you please get some clothes on? My husband is in the room." She gestured curtly to the mongoose's lower section.

The unflappable mongoose let out a raspberry as she hopped down from the coffee table to scrounge around the apartment floor to find the various articles of clothing that got thrown off in the turmoil from the previous night. "Right, like he hasn't seen plenty of those already." She snarked, picking up her sweatpants that had amazingly cleared the entire room.

Dismissing Zoey, Murana turned to Anthony, who had just delivered a steaming mug of coffee directly into her paws. She accepted a small peck on the cheek from him as he went about putting on the remainder of his uniform. He had just left their bedroom a second time when she noted his nose sniffing in irritation. "Honey, did you spray Steven's scent in our bathroom?"

Feigning any knowledge of that, "I have no idea what you are talking about, dear." She brought the mug to her lips and drank some of the rejuvenating liquid.

With sudden anger, he stabbed a finger at her, "You're lying! I knew I recognized that scent! Was Steven here last night?" He began looking around the apartment trying to see if he was hiding anywhere. "You know how I hate him sleeping around my feet!" He gave an involuntary shudder. "His little rodent fingers and nose touching and sniffing my paws, it's creepy! I don't know how you can stand it! Is there even a reason he does that?"

A loud bang echoed across the room, the sound of a coffee mug slamming onto the kitchen counter. Zoey paused in mid-dress, poking an eye out over the collar of the shirt she was yanking onto herself.

With arms crossed and tail swishing in agitation, Murana rebuked immediately, "He is not a rodent; he is my son. The only reason I made him leave our home was to honor you as my husband and your request to have space to ourselves being that he was old enough to live on his own. If I had a say, he would still be here with us, sleeping at our feet and taking comfort in the fact that he is loved and wanted here."

He barked a laugh, rising to the occasion of her ire, "He's not even your real son! He's just some stinky skunk you picked up from a musk mill that you couldn't find the parents for!"

She slammed a paw onto the counter, "I don't care if he's not mine by blood. I paid for the paperwork and I raised him for the last ten years of my life when no one else wanted him!"

Anthony threw his paws up, "He's been nothing but a hassle since I married you. He stinks up the apartment on a whim, hogs you all to himself and gives me these little death glares every time I'm around him. Even my colleagues at work make fun of me that I have a skunk son."

"So you're embarrassed to have him as your child." She responded with ice in her voice. "You're embarrassed to be married to a wolf that has a skunk for a son. You are embarrassed of me."

He slapped a paw to his head, growling in frustration. "That's not what I meant!"

Murana's tail stopped moving, "So what exactly did you mean, Anthony? That you don't approve of your wife and her choices with whom she chooses to adopt? You were his father for the short amount of time he was here in our home when you married me. You should have gone to him and bonded to him in a way I never could have. Instead, you chose to be immature and childish about it and took offense to his very existence here. Now he doesn't even care who you are anymore."

Anthony slouched on the backing of the couch, looking defeated. "Murana, I'm sorry. I feel we got off on the wrong foot here."

"You think?!" She snapped.

Holding a paw out to her in surrender, he pleaded, "Look, I just felt crowded from day one with that skunk. All that time dating you, I never felt there was anyone else in the world but me to you. The moment we got married, I realized how wrong I was. I feel like I'm second wheel to you two and like I'm fighting just to win your affections."

Steven probably doesn't think so right now, Murana thought. Dashing the memory away, she refocused on Anthony, "You don't have to fight for anything. I agreed with you and deferred to your authority by convincing Steven to move out. What would have helped prior was your willingness to love him as you love me."

Getting a bit perturbed that it all came back to that skunk, he glared at her, "Look, I know you are sad about not having him around anymore, but we're going to get a new cub in the house now. We both know we've been trying hard these past few months to make a baby. I'm excited to bring a new life of our own to-"

"I'm barren." Murana said flatly, drawing a blank stare from Anthony. Without waiting for a response, she pressed on, "The doctor told me months ago. I cannot bear children."

It took him nearly a minute to process, his mouth hanging partially open. "Was it…because of the abuse you've told me about?" He ventured a guess, still in shock at what he had just learned. He knew very little of what had happened to her when she was a cub, but never could get the whole story out of her. Starting to get a bit angry over being denied this revelation, his voice rose, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Does it really matter now? Even if I could conceive, how could I truly trust you'd love this cub any better than you did Steven?" She shot back, her expression cold.

The gravity of the situation hit him like a sledgehammer in the chest, forcing him to catch his breath. "You mean we'll never have any children?" The thought of that skunk being the only thing to carry on his name seemed laughable, ridiculous. Why was this happening to him?

Not caring at this point what her husband thought, she dropped the next bomb. "Oh, we will. Whether you are here to be a father or not to them is debatable. I've been to Tail Hollow Orphanage several times now and I believe I've found my second son. A raccoon named Max."

Anthony curled his nose in disgust, "Another freaking rodent? What is it with you and these mammals? Why can't we just adopt a wolf cub like a normal-"

He had no time to react as she closed the distance and slapped him hard across the side of his face. "Max is not some rodent trash! He isn't even a rodent! If you won't support me in helping young, troubled boys live and grow in a happy home, then I don't need you here."

His eyes bored daggers into her own, but she did not relent. At length, he got up from the couch without a word, grabbed his patrol cap gracelessly and stormed out the door, making sure it slammed hard on its hinges, rattling the entire room. Murana didn't even bother to turn around to see him leave, she was so agitated and distraught at what had just transpired that she couldn't bear to think about anything else but calming her own breathing.

A small movement out of the corner of her eye caused her to leap over the couch, using a paw to assist her across its width. She landed mere feet away from Zoey, who had an odd look of both surprise and disappointment. "Zoey?" Murana exhaled, withdrawing her claws. "I thought you had already left!"

"And I thought my best friend wasn't the Dark Flame Wolf!" The mongoose riposted, hands on her tiny hips.

Flustered at the sudden shift in topic, Murana had to take a few mental steps back to process just what she was being accused of. "I'm sorry?" She asked at last, trying to give herself time to come up with a suitable explanation.

Cocking her head at Murana, Zoey accused, "Yeah, don't think I didn't wake up to see you all dressed up in some crazy costume bringing in some of the worst stench I had ever smelt in my entire life! I had heard reports for years about some crazy nighttime vigilante going bat-shit crazy and burning people left and right, and this entire time it was my best friend who couldn't even bother to tell me it was her! Looks like Anthony isn't the only one being lied to here."

Heart skipping several beats, Murana wasn't sure how much Zoey was willing to compromise, given their long friendship together. She could technically turn her in, knowing who she was, and that would be the end of her free life in Zootopia. Hoping that cooler heads would prevail, she relaxed and stood up a bit taller. "I'm sorry. I just didn't want to get anyone involved in my nighttime ventures. If I was ever caught and my connections with my family and friends were traced back, they could have legitimate plausible deniability of my actions."

"I get that, you idiot!" The mongoose marched straight up to Murana and smacked her across the shin, drawing a small growl. "What I'm trying to say is I don't give a donkey's ass about them coming after me to interrogate me about you. I'd lie through my teeth if I had to. I'm more appalled that my best friend is burning mammals to a crisp, even if they did deserve it!"

Murana looked away angrily, "They did deserve it!" After a pointed look from Zoey, she rumbled, "You wouldn't understand!"

Raising both hands in mock surrender, Zoey chided, "Fine, it's none of my business how you get off these days. You want to burn people for shits and giggles, be my guest. Just don't expect me to have your back when all you do is go around and murder people. Burning them alive? Even I'm not that cruel!"

The large wolf scowled at the tiny mongoose, "That's not how I operate! You know what? I don't even know why I'm having this conversation with you. I need to get ready for work."

"Fine! Run away with your tail between your legs! Doesn't change the fact you have been lying to me for years now!" Zoey yelled, hopping up onto the couch and then onto its backing to get onto a higher level with the retreating wolf. She jabbed a finger at Murana, "I mean, I know I'd tell you if I had anything crazy going on in my life like that! We've known each other for what? Twelve years now? Heck, we even shared a few mammals between us!"

Murana gritted her teeth as she gripped her keys from the counter dish hard enough to draw blood in her paws, "I was a different wolf back then. That isn't me now."

"Clearly!" Zoey huffed. "Where is that fun Murana I knew and loved? Clearly not standing here before me! All I see is a cowering liar and murderer who hides things from those she supposedly trusts the most."

"Get out." The words came before the thought was processed, but the intent was clear.

"I wish I could say you better be glad we are friends, but I can't." Zoey sulked, sliding off the backside of the couch before climbing up a nightstand to the glass door opening to her small apartment suite. "I may not have the heart to forgive you for this."

Although the mongoose wanted to slam the barrier door connecting their two spaces, she closed the glass lightly and clicked the lock. Without knowing why, Murana was already heaving from anger, rage, despair and resentment. She didn't really know how she felt. Her own friend just denounced her, and her husband left on a bad note. It felt like everything was falling apart around her and she was being abandoned yet again.

She collapsed to her knees and wept.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – Snarlbucks – On the Corner of Screech Ave. and Pride St.  
_ _Tuesday – 07:00 AM – Overcast Skies / Slight Rain_

Murana struggled hard against the flow of tears that threatened to erupt at any moment. Realizing that her eyes were probably bloodshot from the flood this morning, she avoided looking at any mammal directly as she subconsciously wove through the streets and alley shortcuts to get to her favorite café place. The thought at the forefront of her mind was that somehow just seeing Steven would make it all better, that seeing his smiling face and him calling her mom would alleviate the entire morning's pain.

Excusing herself as she sidled past a few customers in line going out the door, she strode into the shop, her eyes surveying the booths. Landing on their familiar spot, her heart danced unsettlingly at it being empty. There were no cups of coffee ready to drink, no backpack and no skunk. It was simply empty; immediately filled by several hippos who stared at her oddly as she gawked at their new seating arrangements.

She scanned the entire café in hopes she could spy some hint of black and white, her eyes settling on a very luscious tail that looked and smelled oddly familiar. Pacing over, she faltered a few steps closer when the skunk turned around and it was female. After a moment and a head tilt, she recognized the skunk as the same girl she had asked to keep Steven company the previous morning, complete with a belly-showing top and scratched-up jeans.

Noticing Murana staring at her, the skunk stopped in her tracks, having finished doctoring up her drink at the small sidebar. "Hello…may I help you?"

The shock of Steven not being there for her today was beginning to tear at her sense of reality. Too many things were unraveling and she was instantly reminded of his note that she had taken yesterday despite his misgivings of even offering it to her. Closing her eyes in regret, she recalled what it said, that he would not be here had she taken the note. Grief was threatening to overtake her.

Seeing that something was clearly wrong, the skunk took another step forward, extending a paw to see if the wolf was alright. "I'm sorry, are you okay, ma'am?" Recognition dawned on her face as she remembered her. "Ma'am? Are you the one with the skunk for a son from yesterday?"

Fighting back the tears aggressively trying to overwhelm her, she sniffed and did a curt nod at the skunk. "Yes, I am."

The polecat's paw immediately shot forward, surprising Murana in its unexpectedness. "The name is Courtney! It's a pleasure to meet the mother of such a wonderful son. I'm even more awed by the fact you decided to choose a skunk of all mammals to adopt as your son. It makes me even more interested in getting to know him better now!"

A bit taken aback by the extreme praise, Murana cautiously extended her paw and shook Courtney's. "Why would that be hard to believe that I would adopt a skunk?" Having lived with Steven for years, she had barely given it a second thought that it would be odd to others that she had a skunk for a son. She loved him for who he was, not what he was.

Courtney's eyes bulged at Murana's response, "Are you kidding? How long have you lived in Zootopia?" She immediately caught herself, suddenly realizing she had spoken a bit too loudly as several patrons turned their eyes onto them. Lowering a few octaves, she spoke a bit normally, "Sorry, I guess I got a bit excited there." She gave a bit of a giggled snort before continuing, "I guess I was just surprised that you asked me to talk to your son and it was another one of my kind."

She cocked an eyebrow at the flattering polecat. "One of your kind? Why would that make a difference?"

Courtney shook her head, almost blushing, "Nothing. I'm sorry…guess I'm just stumbling over myself. You must be a cool mom to be a proud parent to Steven." The name left her lips like a lovesick puppy on the summer's breeze. She had gotten his name out of him on their first meeting yesterday morning and she had been thinking about him all that day.

"Yes…yes, I am." Murana managed to utter, regaining her composure. She turned to look around again after releasing Courtney's paw. Have you seen him this morning by chance? I was expecting him to meet me here." She didn't want to seem desperate in finding her son, so she tried her best to appear nonchalant about Steven's disappearance.

Not to appear rude to the mother of her potential future husband, Courtney turned to the side to take a small sip of her coffee, nodding her head briefly as she confirmed its taste and quality before rotating back to Murana. "Yeah…I was kinda hoping to meet him here again myself. I'm probably just as disappointed as you were when I found out he wasn't here. Last I saw him he was on his way to work, the Zootopia News Network building."

Murana's brow rose as she shot a look at the skunk, "Impressive. You already know him by name, know where he works and probably got his phone number too."

A slight flush hit Courtney's cheeks as she glanced away with embarrassment, taking another sip from her coffee. "Possibly."

Murana had to shake her head with admiration at this determined skunk. When she had tagged her to go talk to Steven the day prior, she hadn't meant for the poor girl to fall head over heels for him. Yes, it was true she was trying to get him out of his comfort zone and find a girlfriend and potentially settle down for a family of his own, she just didn't realize she might have picked a real go-getter this time.

Courtney's eyes shifted back to wolf, "Look, I really appreciate you introducing us. He is a sweet guy and now that I've seen what a lovely wolf he has for a mother, I'm more excited than ever to become a part of his life!" Her eyes flashed with a glint of longing, her thoughts distant at the remembrance of her meeting with Steven.

"Thank…you…" Murana accepted haltingly, now unsure if this particular skunk was the right one for her son.

Courtney seemed a bit on the aggressive side with potential clingy, stalker tendencies. She barely met the girl and the vibe was strong with this one. She had little time to ponder the thought when her ears perked up at the sound of two voices entering the café. Swiveling to the entrance, she spied her husband Anthony entering the line with a fox that looked vaguely familiar.

Murana's ears flattened as her eyes narrowed to slits. This was the last place she wanted to meet her husband right now, let alone that fox buddy of his whom she now recognized as the one from the previous night's escapades. Knowing it wouldn't be long before she was either spotted or smelled, she had to excuse herself quickly from the chatty skunk before her. It already seemed to be an impossible task to get her to shut up.

"…So, I was very ecstatic when he handed me his number, just like that!" She tittered again, plowing on as if Murana's attention was still focused solely on her. "I mean, sure, I thought it was quite forward of him to just give me his number, but who was I to argue, right? Uh…ma'am?" She looked at Murana quizzically as she began to notice her increasing lack of interest.

Raising her ears to appear less aggressive, Murana shook her head to clear her thoughts. "I'm sorry, umm...Courtney, was it? Something just came up and I really need to get going. Work related duties and all that."

Courtney made a brush through the air with a paw as if she was in complete comprehension, "Of course! Of course! How silly of me. I should have known better, you are quite the busy wolf. What, with being the CEO of Lemming Brothers Bank and all."

Freaking hell! Murana swore internally. Was there nothing that Steven didn't tell her?! This skunk could be an excellent interrogator without even trying. Dropping all sense of etiquette, she turned on a heel and began threading through the crowd of patrons, taking a circuitous route through the store to avoid coming within paces of her husband and his friend.

"Well, well, well!" Came a snarky voice, filled with mirth. "Anthony, I do believe I have spotted your better half!"

Anthony growled as he glared at Nick Wilde, who seemed nonplussed at the aggression. "Really? I don't see her anywhere." He lied, trying his best to avoid another confrontation.

"She certainly looks better than you." The fox ribbed, smacking Anthony's arm with the back of a paw as he laughed heartily at his own humor. His audience was not amused. "Seriously though, you been lying to the department doctor again about your eyesight? You know that's a retireable offense." Seeing as he was not going to get any further with him, Nick turned and waved down Murana as she was flitting past several hippos. "Mrs. Wolford! Hey! Hello! Yes you, the insanely smelly wolf in the back!"

"Nick...!" Anthony warned, but it was too late. He could see his wife's eyes close in frustration as she turned to them. The encounter was inevitable now.

"Are you sure you're not smelling yourself?" She said coolly, crossing her arms as she strode up to the two of them, looking down her snout at the cheeky vulpine.

"My lady," He began with faux offense, "I would not dream of going to work smelling of…" He began sniffing the air a bit around her. "…essence of skunk." His nose twitched as the scent triggered a recent memory. Before he had a chance to act on it, Anthony pushed him aside.

"Stop smelling my wife! That's not cool!" He chastised. "That's personal!"

Nick shrugged his shoulders as he backed off. "I'm only smelling the front end, besides, I got the impression you didn't seem to care much about her this morning."

"I'm sure he doesn't." Murana piggybacked, her gaze now shifting over to her husband.

"Lay off, will ya?" He scowled.

"Oh, I'm sorry, but I couldn't help but overhear." A small finger followed swiftly by a paw rose up between them as Courtney inserted herself into their conversation. Immediately that paw began to pump Anthony's vigorously. "I heard you are Steven's dad now? Two wolves adopting a skunk! This is even more amazing than one!"

"Congratulations, Dad." Nick teased. "I'm sure she'll be an excellent addition to your wonderful family. May she be fruitful and provide many skunk grandkids for you two!"

Anthony violently ripped his paw away from hers, eliciting a bit of a shocked cry from Courtney as Murana gripped her firmly by the shoulder and moved her to the side behind her. "Alright, I think I'm just about done here. If you are that adamant about my decisions and whom I choose to love and bring into our home as our children, then maybe it's best if you don't come home at all tonight."

Nick's grin faded instantly as he saw that the situation was more dire than he had assessed. "Anthony, I may not be an expert in relationships, but now would be the point where you'd grovel."

Ignoring the sputtering of her inept husband, her ears perked up as her attention was diverted to the news broadcast happening on the television perched just above the small bay windowed seating area overlooking the street. On the screen were firefighters putting out massive flames as pieces of a building structure collapsed in on itself. Multiple mammals huddling together as they staggered out of the entrance, covered in soot and grime.

The familiar leopard anchor, Fabienne, was reporting live from the scene, "…And as you can see, we have yet another orphanage devastated by these electrical storms. You can see behind me children and caretakers being evacuated from what was once Pale Moon Orphanage right here in Tundra Town. As of yet, they have not accounted for all the young tenants of this once prestigious establishment."

"I have to go." Murana said abruptly. "I'm late for work." She absently excused herself, promptly leaving the three of them in her wake as she unceremoniously left them awkwardly standing together staring at each other.

"I can see where Steven gets his temper." Courtney mused, looking at Anthony.

"That would explain her perfume today." Nick commented, looking at Courtney.

"I'm going to be sick." Anthony grimaced, looking at neither of them.

Not bothering to hear any further remarks, Murana was already out the door and on the streets. Dodging and weaving with the best of commuters on their way to work, her sights set solely on the ZNN tower several blocks ahead, past the ZPD station. Taking the more congested areas would probably take her up to half an hour, but knowing the alleys like the back of her paw, she could probably reach ZNN that way in half the time. Confirming her course of action, she dipped past an oblivious porcupine couple and down a rather grimy backstreet seemingly crushed between two buildings as if it was an afterthought.

She was nearly there until her eyes met what her nose perceived several seconds prior: three badgers bunched over what appeared to be a purse they no doubt mugged from some poor, unsuspecting victim. One of them spotted her and immediately called out to his brethren. She was already midway down the alley. Judging from their size, they could close the distance before she could get back to the main thoroughfare. She was locked into this altercation. Steeling herself against them, she stood tall with her legs spread firm.

"Oy! Hey there, little lady! What brings you to this part of town?" The center badger drawled with a thick accent, the other two fanning out to the sides past the nearby dumpster to close off her flank.

Murana snorted as she saw the diminutive mammals. Although they were nowhere near her height, she knew she couldn't underestimate them. Badgers could be quite vicious. "I don't think the word 'little' means what you think it means." Murana retorted; crossing her arms as she casually assessed the situation.

"Are you scared?" The badger on the right threatened, trying to appear larger than he was.

"Hardly." Murana answered truthfully. She was already figuring out a game plan in her head.

"Looks like we got a cocky one here, guys!" The one on the left sniggered, a knife already being brandished. "So, what you got for us? With your finely pressed outfit, I bet you must be carrying all sorts of cash and jewelry! Come on, cough them up and we won't hurt you…much!"

The center one eyed her up and down, tinkering with a tooth with his blade, a glint in his eye. "Unless you have some other form of payment for us to take." He leered.

Murana sneered, her lip raising to reveal her row of teeth. What disgusting vermin. "That'll be the day. Come claim it if you feel male enough to take it." She boasted, a hind paw sliding back a small distance, in preparation for their first move.

The right one bristled at this and snarled. "Get her, guys!"

Sliding her paw the remaining distance, she dropped to a knee, surprising the leaping badger as he sailed over her back. She immediately flipped around, snagging the unfortunate critter's tail in midair, claws digging in violently. Flouting his yelp of pain, she pivoted on her knee, leaning to the side to avoid a swipe from the left badger and his knife. Completing the movement, she slapped the first badger with his buddy, barreling him over onto his rump.

Flinging the brock like a sack of trash, the small body hit the nearby dumpster lid with a grunt. It rebounded and landed in the bags of refuse inside, the lid jarred from its open position, slamming shut with a clang. Her paw reaching deep into her suit pants, she slit open the interior lining with a claw before pulling out two kunai that were fastened inside the seams. With the two of them flipped up between two of her fingers, she dove back into the fray.

The previous badger who had brandished his knife was already upon her as she slammed her fist into his muzzle, the sharp blades sinking in like slicing butter. Blood spurted as he cried in agony before being lifted up by his head and smashed down on the other side of Murana. She cried out in pain at the stretch she had to do to flip him over, her stomach lacerations reopening in the process.

She had finished kicking the now immobile corpse of her kunai as the final badger slashed savagely at her face, as she crouched to recover from her wounds. He had nicked her nose and crimson sprayed on the street. She howled in fury as she dug her blades upwards deep into his skull, bypassing the lower jaw bone. His eyes rolled up into his head as she screamed in rage at him, pulling the weapons out, taking care to wipe them clean on their dingy clothes.

The brock left standing in the dumpster peeked out, his eyes bulging at the brutal scene before him. She barked at him, "You better sit your pretty ass down in that trash where you belong if you want to live."

This prompted an abrupt bang as he dropped the lid back onto himself. Murana cursed her luck as she felt something wet oozing from her stomach. She exerted herself a bit too hard. Maybe saving time getting to ZNN wasn't such a good idea after all, but she needed to see her son. Limping now from the reopening of all her pain receptors, she whined all the way to her son's place of work, taking care to hide the kunai and not appear as if she didn't just get assaulted

* * *

 _I knew that we needed to delve a bit more into Murana's past and explore the darker themes behind why she does what she does. The horrifying dream expanded upon the hints we picked up from the first day and helps illuminate some of her motives and the decisions she makes in the coming arguments. For Murana to get to the specific place in her character arc for this story, I knew I needed to rip out the supports of her family life and put her in vulnerable positions, both physically and emotionally. The loss and abandonment of everyone around her that she loves was intentional to get her to a point where future decisions and mistakes make sense and have a far greater impact on her. Reintroducing Courtney was a needed element here. She was originally supposed to be a throwaway character from day 1, but I ended up having a far better idea for her later on. Finally, the fight scene at the end served a few purposes, one of which was to display just how lethal Murana still was, even while injured. Which would make a future scene later on that much more shocking. Note: Surrika Tunnah was changed to Zoey Jovan because the owner of the original character removed their permission for me to use._


	5. Tuesday - A Darker Forecast - Midday

_Savannah Central – Zootopia News Network Office Building – Corner of Elm and Birch_  
 _Tuesday – 08:50 AM – Overcast Skies / Slight Rain_

The familiar ZNN spire piercing the sky greeted her eyes as she rounded the bend of the nearest building. Trying to not limp as she held her stomach lightly, she did her best to not let her white blouse touch the reopened gashes. The last thing she needed was a dark stain of red seeping through her fabrics and inviting all sorts of unwanted questions. Her singular goal was to just get into the building, find her son, talk it out and leave. She didn't want complications.

Squinting at the harsh, reflective glare from the sleek window siding of the impressive structure, she entered through the twin sliding glass doors into the foyer, knowing just where she was going. She cringed as she heard the jovial voice of Andy Lagopus, who seemed to have a knack for knowing when she was in the building.

"Mrs. Wolford? Mrs. Wolford! How lovely to see you! Please, if you have a moment?" He called out, his pressed suit brimming with pride as it fell upon his tiny physique. His smile was contagious, but she did not have time to indulge in whatever frivolities he had in mind.

Without even turning her head in recognition, she hurried up the escalator to the second floor balcony and rushed towards the elevators. She had just turned around and pressed the button calling the carriage, getting in quickly as the doors opened. Her eyes darting out between the dual doors to see Andy's face, now with a bit more concern as it appeared he might not make the elevator. With a rush of relief and a satisfying whine on the other side of the closed doors, she leaned back against the railing of the elevator, looking out the wall window to soak in the breathtaking view of Zootopia as she rose up the floors.

Murana barely registered that she had reached her intended floor as the doors slid open, a few hyraxs ambling in, looking up at her curiously. Excusing herself hastily, she swiftly passed by them into the maze of cubicles. Traversing down the left side, she turned to the target destination to find the small space empty. Steven's hat and camera were gone. Not even his little vest he sometimes wore to keep warm on chill days was on the back of his seat. His scent wasn't even fresh in the cubicle, like he hadn't even bothered to come into work.

She sagged heavily on the dividing wall, its frame creaking under her weight. She groaned in agony as the stinging returned, her paw gingerly clutching her abdomen. Panting profusely, she focused on pushing through the pain and ignoring the screaming cuts from Javier the previous night. Curse that stupid cat! She should have been more cautious around him. She had completely forgotten about their instinctual flight or fight response. She was stupid.

Her nose twitched at the familiar scent wafting down the rows of workspaces. Her lip curled as she recognized it. The odor belonged to a specific maned wolf she had the displeasure of meeting the last time she was here. Ears flicking at the subtle shift in sound and cues, she could tell he had picked up her scent as well and was making a beeline straight for her position. It wasn't long before the knowing smirk came into view, complete with trademarked orange hoodie.

"Christopher was it?" She forced a smile, her memory not failing her. Doing her best, Murana straightened up to full height and looked down at the smaller maned wolf. "Do you know where Steven went?" She asked, trying to herd any superfluous banter.

The wolf casually leaned up against the divider, crossing both his arms and a leg as he looked at her indifferently. "Chris, actually. But yeah, that's me. Glad to know you at least remembered my name."

Murana shrugged, matching the wolf's blasé faire attitude. "It was the least I could do for one of my son's 'friends.'" She ended with specific emphasis on the final word, drawing an expected response from Chris, his ears folding back with irritation.

Doing his best to overlook her jab, "But no, I have not seen Steven. In fact, he hasn't been in all morning. He usually is pretty prompt at showing up to work. I was honestly hoping you could tell me more. Sometimes I really worry about that stinker."

Seeing his expression soften at his genuine concern for his coworker, she opened up a bit more. "That is a bit worrisome, yes. He didn't show up at our usual meeting spot at our favorite café."

His ears perked back up, "You meet with him daily?"

Murana shrugged, "More or less. We haven't been meeting as frequently as we used to, but I don't complain. As long as I get to see him once a week, I'm usually pretty content."

Chris cracked a small smile, "That's honestly really sweet." At a look from the larger wolf, "I'm being serious. I'm not trying to tease here. Look, I think I didn't make the best first impression yesterday. You just seemed to have rubbed a raw nerve and I lashed out. I apologize."

Sensing his sincerity, she responded in kind, "Well, you treating my son the way you did was doing you no favors." At a grunt from the maned wolf, she nodded before continuing, "Nevertheless, I'm willing to let bygones be bygones. So you said Steven didn't even show up this morning to work?"

He scratched his chin absently, "Apparently. He usually is here a bit earlier than I am most days. He's pretty dedicated, that one."

"Of course he is. He's my son." Murana snorted, as if it was plainly obvious.

Chris gave her a curious look, "Well, he's almost always on the front lines, always going for that big scoop or story that'll get him on television." The wolf chuckled a bit, "Probably why he got promoted to video journalist recently. Granted, he probably would not have gotten as far as he has without his good pal, Chris, here to help him out!" He finished with a satisfied smirk, a thumb pointing at himself.

"Oh really?" She shared his mirth, but not necessarily the same intent. "Do tell."

"You mean he didn't tell you?" His grin broadened, "I'm the one out there pounding the streets and giving him the tips and info from my buddies in the hood. Places he's a bit too scared to go to and report on."

Murana raised a brow at his boasting, "The hood?"

"Yeah, I was raised on the rough side of the street growing up. Got involved in a few gangs, but ultimately got out of it and decided to make a name for myself here at ZNN." Chris shrugged it off like it was no big deal. "So now I just use my connections with some of my old pals who may still be working the rackets and underground gangs. In exchange for not ratting them out, they help give me valuable information on the really bad dudes in town, ones that nobody wants around because it's bad for business."

Murana rubbed her jaw a bit at this news. Was this where Steven was getting all these leads from? It would explain how Steven knew exactly where certain deals and meetings were going down all across Zootopia. Having an insider mammal would definitely be helpful. "So if you are so entrenched with these folks, why not use this information to your advantage and get the promotion yourself?" She questioned.

The maned wolf picked at a fresh scar on his forearm as he rolled the arm sleeve back down over it, "I'm not much for being famous myself. I prefer to stay out of the spotlight, but my buddy Steven? I feel like he's a little brother to me, you know? Gotta help the little guy out."

"So selfless of you." She remarked, hiding a smile. "Well, I've got to get going before Lagopus discovers where I'm at. It's been nice meeting you again."

"Hey, hold up!" He motioned with a paw, ensuring she stopped, turning towards him. "If you do find him, could you give him this lead I have? I know he's been following this string of assaults for a good while and is building quite the exciting serial rapist case."

Murana's ears rose with interest. "Exciting, huh? Well, I'll pass along the information as soon as I see him."

"Right then." Chris clicked his tongue and slipped into Steven's cubicle. He snatched a pad of sticky notes and took a pen out of his hoodie pocket. He hastily scrawled an address and time as well as a few names onto the small square sheet before tearing it from the stack and handing it to Murana. "This is the location of a pub he frequents, just on the east side of Tundra Town and the most common times of week he'll be boozing it up."

She studied the information with some surprise, "A sheep? Living in Tundra Town and accused of multiple rape cases? I'm surprised that the ZPD haven't gotten ahold of him yet. Quite the odd suspect."

"I know right?" Chris cackled. "But it is what it is. Hopefully he'll find this information useful and maybe it'll get that sheep that much closer to being caught when this story gets out!"

"Oh, you can bet on it." She nodded; a peculiar glint in her eye as she stuffed the sheet into her blouse pocket.

Chris began to sniff a bit more and looked down at her stomach. "Mrs. Wolford? Is…everything alright?"

Following his gaze, she beheld a small dark spot that had seeped through her undershirt and began its visible spread across her outer suit coat. She sputtered slightly as she excused herself, "Ah…if you'll excuse me, I do have to get going. Thanks for the information though! I will hand it to Steven the moment I see him. Later, Chris!"

He cocked his head oddly as he stared off after the larger, retreating wolf, unsure if he should follow to see if she was okay or not. At length, he shook his head, confident that he had passed on what he had intended and headed back down the rows of cubicles to his workstation.

Murana has just reached the elevators as the doors opened and greeting her was the sparkling visage of Andy Lagopus, his face brightening at her appearance. "Mrs. Wolford! So glad I finally caught up with you!"

"Shit!" She swore under her breath, just before she dove to the side and made a quick sprint to the stairwell just yards away.

The last thing she needed was a lengthy chat with the loquacious vulpine. She slammed the door open, hearing it bang against the concrete wall. Immediately vaulting over the railing, she aimed for the opposing side three floors down. She cried out as her injuries stretched open further, causing her to falter in mid-leap. She thumped against the railing, abdomen first, as her upper body curled around and gripped the metal tight.

"Mrs. Wolford? Oh, good heavens! Are you all right?" Came a voice high above, a silver fox looking over the center opening. "I'm going to call an ambulance right away! Why on earth would you do that?" He marveled with confusion.

"That's not necessary!" She gasped, fighting back tears as she scrambled over and onto the cold, tiled stairs. Rolling onto her back, she raised her head to look down at the widening spot diffusing across her middle. She let her head drop and took several deep breaths as she moaned in misery at her wounds. "That's not necessary…" She said again with a whisper.

With considerable effort, she rolled over onto her hands and knees and got herself back up onto her feet. She limped the rest of the way down the stairs, blessed that Andy had not followed her advice and went to call an ambulance anyway. She was just heading out one of the side emergency exits of the ZNN tower when the ambulance pulled up front. By the time they reached her blood trail in the stairwell, she was well on her way to her bank.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – Lemming Bros. Bank Corporate HQ – 44th Floor, Executive Offices_  
 _Tuesday – 10:36 AM – Overcast Skies / Steady Rain_

Murana stumbled out of the elevator, nearly bowling over several lemmings in the process. Some were staring with bulging eyes at the little droplets of crimson trailing after their hobbling boss, a few getting on their phones to take pictures for their TailChat accounts. Murana's mind was not on her appearance at this very moment, her singular goal was to get to her office where she could have access to a fresh pair of clothes and some medical supplies she kept tucked away for emergencies.

Gripping the handle of her office door, she stumbled in, the frame rattling as it bashed gratingly on the opaque glass wall looking out into the main working space. A small squeak emanated from beyond her desk as a pair of round spectacles rose up from behind the monitor of her laptop. Her secretary, Ron, had been typing away furiously on the computer before being interrupted. The first thing she noticed was a strange, intoxicating scent in the air, but that was the least of her concerns; she needed to get herself fixed up quickly.

"Oh, hi Boss!" Ron beamed happily, adjusting his glasses on his nose before pushing the chair away from the desk and hopping down cheerfully, waddling around it to greet her formally. He stopped in midstep as he detected her growing stain of cerise that had all but drenched the front of her blouse. "Holy anchovies! Boss! What happened? Are you all right?" He surged forward, his paw going into his pockets digging for some unseen object.

"Stop!" Murana raised a paw, warding him to stay where he was. "It's fine…I just got mugged by some low lives down by the local Snarlbucks. I'll be fine, just get me to the desk."

Ron raised an eyebrow as he slowly brought out a phone from his pocket, "Are you sure, Boss? You don't want me to call the ambulance?"

"Most definitely." She exhaled, collapsing onto the small otter, drawing a surprised squeak from him as the phone flung out of his paw and clattered to the ground. With considerable effort, he managed to help her to the desk as she literally crawled across the floor, her legs dragging along the carpet. "Thank you."

"Well, if you reconsider," The otter continued sighing, untangling himself from her arm as he moped over to his cellphone, a nice splintered crack across its surface, "we can get the paramedics here right away. You don't have to work in your condition, I can handle the bank today. You know what? I think I will do it anyway."

"No!" She practically yelled, a deep growl in her voice as her head pivoted to him with menace, causing him to stop his finger midway to the touch screen. She dropped an octave, "No, I have what I need here to fix myself."

Without another word and the curious otter looking on, she used the desk to limp around to where her chair was. She fell into it with another whimper, her hind paw hooking a claw into the desk drawer handle and pulling it open. She leaned forward and grabbed a few bits of thread and needle. She pulled out a small bottle of 150 proof vodka, its glass exterior clinking with other bottles of similar liquors. Without thought of propriety, Murana ripped open her blouse, revealing her bare chest and stomach beneath.

"Oh, oh my…!" Ron stuttered as he quickly flipped around. A flush hit his cheeks as he tried to look mighty interested at what was happening outside her office door, shooing away various lemmings that had stopped by to look in on their boss.

Ignoring the bashful proclamations of her secretary, she slammed a fist on the desk, shaking the monitor violently as she poured the alcohol on her reopened lesions. Gritting her teeth, she threaded the string through the needle head before tying a knot and biting off the excess. Panting hard at the exertion and pain, she shakily aimed the needle tip at the top of the first wound before diving it in through the flesh.

Several lemmings outside dropped their papers as an overheated printer exploded from misuse as Murana's howls echoed through the office. She began crying at the torture, but knew it needed to be done. Over and over, she strung the string through her skin, criss-crossing the thread to help force a tight seal when she pulled the two ends together, closing up each wound in turn. At long last, she snipped the last excess with some scissors from her desk before slumping into the chair, exhausted and tired.

Rocking back and forth on his heels, Ron was muttering softly to himself for a time until he noticed that her cries of torment had finally stopped. He dared a peek over his shoulder to see her drooping behind her desk, taking a huge chug from the bottle. "Boss? Is everything all right now? Is it safe for my virgin eyes to turn around?"

She snorted in response, setting the liquor down, "Please, Ron. Something tells me you've been around the block a few times."

He bristled at this comment, "I'll have you know…"

Putting another paw up, she stopped him, "I'd rather not know. Your declarations of purity aren't important right now and besides your eyes clearly aren't virgin anymore." She groaned with a half-hearted smile at her bad joke before lifting herself back up to sitting position, stripping the rest of her shirt and outer coat off, causing Ron to flip right back around. "Ron, I know I'm your boss, but stop being proper right now and go get me some new clothes. They're in the wall closet right over there." She indicated as she dabbed the fresh blood off her wound with her soiled clothes.

Noticing where she was pointing, he pushed his round glasses back up his face. "Ah, right. Of course."

He was unusually silent this morning, having been thrown completely off balance by the damaged appearance of Murana and the complete lack of modesty with regards to her situation. Not wasting any time, he walked over to the wooden paneling of the wall opposite the mounted television and felt around for the handle, pulling the sliding hidden door outward and revealing a row of hanging suits that she kept on hand in case of emergencies.

"Did you want the blue, beige, purple or green?" He called out, his nose deep in the fabrics to prevent having to view her naked torso.

"I don't care." She called back, swiftly doffing her ruined suit pants and kicking them over to the trash can next to the plant, almost making it in. "Just pick one and give it to me."

Randomly picking the purple, he climbed up onto the lower door mechanism to reach up high enough to pull the entire two-piece suit down, almost falling over from the sheer awkward weight of it. Pulling it along after his tail, he lifted it up for her to grab it from him as he turned away to maintain a sense of professionalism in what appeared to be a completely unprofessional situation.

"I know this probably wasn't what you expected when you woke up to drink your coffee this morning." Murana chuckled as she gratefully took the offered suit and began unbuttoning the front. She motioned with a finger for him to turn around, which he did without much prompting. "So, to help bring us back to normalcy, tell me what you've been up to this morning."

Thankful that he finally had something to occupy his mind, he began rattling off his day, "Well, if you remember from yesterday how we linked our offshore accounts and split the money between all the accounts? It seems we've recovered most, if not all, of our business investors overnight. I was in the process of divvying up the newly deposited money amongst the accounts and subtly moving the offshore funds back where they came from when you came in."

With pants and shirt on, she was finally looking more like her normal, CEO self. She stretched out her arms through the suit coat before buttoning the top button on the front. "Thank you for following through with that, Ron. Already in 24 hours, you've been more useful to me than Trudy had been in years." Her nose began to twitch again at the inebriating scent wafting through the air. "What is that smell?"

His eyes brightened up at this. "Ah, well I figured I could surprise you with a nice morning brunch, Boss!" He practically hopped up onto the desk, wobbling over to a big, white bag that she had somehow now noticed sitting on the corner. He reached down into the bag and pulled out a covered plate of food, the smell now permeating the entire office.

Murana cocked her head at the recognition of the scent, "Ron…that smells like chicken. Don't tell me…"

"It is!" He smiled triumphantly, lifting the lid off and revealing a succulent drumstick and breast piece, the steam barely visible rising from it.

Her look was less than approving as she took a step toward it, her tongue unconsciously licking her chaps. "There is only one place I know of that sells something like this and it isn't a place that most mammals go, Ron. Don't tell me you went…beneath the streets for this."

"To the Nocturnal District? Of course I did. You can't find a nice piece of meat like this on the open market in Zootopia, right? I figured as an appreciation gift for hiring me on such short notice and for the best boss I've had, you deserve a surprise!" He seemed positively proud of himself, almost raising a paw to his chest to grab his vest collar, if he had one.

Situating herself back down at her desk, she eyed the chicken with obvious interest, "First off, it is very dangerous down there. The last thing I need is my freshly minted secretary to have some unfortunate death befall him while getting me this extravagant meal. Second, this is quite the illegal form of meat to be eating in public."

Ron's ears wilted as his shoulders sagged, "You don't like it?"

She raised a finger to silence his disappointment, "I'm just not liking the methods and location where you might have gotten this. How did you know about how to even get this?"

"How did you?" He riposted back without hesitation.

"Touché." She raised an eyebrow before pulling the meat towards her, lust evident in her eyes. She stopped briefly, her eyes glancing over at the open office door. "Ah, would you mind closing my office? I'd rather not have my workers get the wrong idea about me. The next thing I know, they'll be spreading picturegrams of me photoshopped eating their friends and family. They're afraid of me enough as it is. Let's not add more fuel to the fire, shall we?"

"On it, Boss!" He was a bit giddy, very eager to shut the door, nearly tripping over his webbed paws as he made his way across the room.

Murana was ecstatic, she hadn't set foot in the Nocturnal District in years; some rather unsavory events transpired that she had no incentive to return to anytime soon in that district. It was a known ordinance in Zootopia that most types of meat were prohibited outside of fish, bugs and other synthesized products. She had all but given up ever going back to one of her places of youth and enjoying the forbidden fruit, as it were.

She drew in a deep breath, letting the scent infiltrate her nostrils, just as she scrunched them up upon seeing the crusted, seasoned skin of the chicken. "Ron, do you like the skin of chicken?"

"The skin? It's almost like a guilty pleasure of mine." He smacked his hands together on a job well done of closing the door, walking back to her with a pleased look.

"Good." She said flatly, ripping the slim casing off the breast and drumstick before handing it off to him. "I rather dislike it. Something about its texture gives me the shivers."

"Oh…" His ears dropped again after being handed the sagging husks of skin. "I'm actually not fond of this type of seasoning they used, a bit too spicy for my tastes. May I?" He started towards the trash can with her discarded suit pants.

She shook her head, nodding instead to the bag on her desk top. "Just pop it in the bag if you don't want it. Thank you though." She lifted the drumstick to her mouth and took a bite, her eyes rolling back in her head as she moaned with pleasure, "This is heavenly."

An odd mixture of smile and frustration flashed across Ron's face, "I'm glad you like it, Murana. Care for something to drink?"

"Okay, now I'm starting to think you're buttering me up for a promotion already." She barked a laugh. "Look, I appreciate all this pampering, especially after having seen me come into work like that, but this is not going to get you any brownie points with me. You still need to do a good day's work every day for a long time to come before your first evaluation period."

The grin came back on his face, "I wouldn't dream of that, Boss. I know full well my performance matters more than my gestures of goodwill. Give me a moment, I'll be back with your drink."

She bowed her head in agreement as he moseyed off to get her mug, opening and shutting the door behind him as he sauntered over to the coffee pot. With no one watching and her stomach growling something fierce, she threw caution to the wind and began devouring the remaining chicken without thought for manners. Leaning back in her chair, she was content with her belly full. She had almost nodded off to sleep when she was jolted by Ron's entrance holding a stack of papers in one paw and a hot, steaming cup in the other.

Murana's face nearly sagged as she saw the huge pile of documents in Ron's paw. "Was that all from yesterday?"

He confirmed with a nod of his head, "Indeed it was, Boss. There was a lot of money transfers and relocation of assets to make it work. Now is the time to back it all up with a paper trail so that it looks like it came from your desk that it was approved."

"Do I need to sign every page?" Her ears drooped further.

His expression did change to one of empathy for her plight, "You are the boss. Unless you give me the power to sign these in your name, this all has to come from you."

Gripping the stack with a shaky paw, she let it flop onto her desk with an audible thud. Resigned to her fate for the rest of the day, she flipped out a pen and clicked it open. She was moving to sign the first page when she saw Ron set a steaming cup next to her. "What's this?" She asked, noticing that it wasn't her usual mug.

"Just a small present that I felt would brighten your day!" He looked pleased.

She picked it up and turned it around, reading the words: '#1 Boss!' She raised a brow at him, "You are really determined on this brown nosing, aren't you? Thank you for the thought, but this doesn't score you any extra points for a raise."

"I know, but did it make you smile at least?" He pressed.

Unable to contain the smirk, she grinned as she brought the mug up to her muzzle, breathing in the fresh scent. She stopped as it touched her lips, Ron watching on with interest at seeing her enjoying his gift. Pulling it back, she stared at the liquid, "Ron, what is this?"

"It's tea! One of my favorite brands too! Earl Grey black tea. It is bold, yet subtle. The perfect pick-me-up in the mornings after a rough sleep! I felt you could use the pep up." He explained, paws clasped behind his back.

Her snout wrinkling, she stood up and walked over to the lone plant in the room before flipping the mug over and dumping its contents into the dirt. "For someone who says he likes to know whom he works for, you sure didn't research enough. I prefer coffee over tea leaves and water."

"Oh…my apologies then. I wasn't aware of your strong distaste for tea." Ron looked genuinely hurt by her disgust for his favorite drink.

"No matter." She said matter-of-factly, sitting back down in her chair and setting the mug aside. "I do appreciate the mug and if it'll make you feel any better, I'll continue to use this mug for the future, all right?" With a gloomy nod from the otter, she revitalized her demeanor and handed the laptop over to him. "Please continue with the asset relocations and let's get everything back in the offshore accounts by the end of today, if we can."

"I'm on it, Boss." Ron responded, maintaining a happy face yet still not overly thrilled with how his morning presents turned out.

Settling into a rhythm, she listened to Ron tapping away on the keyboard as she took one page at a time and signed off each money transfer. She was used to signing paperwork for certain transactions, but never on this scale before. Trudy truly did do a horrible number on her bank. This level of legality was unprecedented and it annoyed her greatly. There had to be a way to automate all this in the future and she was determined to set her freshly hired secretary to figuring out a way of solving this problem.

Bored after about several dozen sheets, she flipped on the flat panel TV to the local news channel. Peter and Fabienne at their usual positions were reporting on the local stories of the day. Ron looked up briefly before continuing his task, the television nothing more than background noise. Several more minutes passed by in silence before Murana's ears perked up at a specific story that had come up on the news.

"And in a shocking development last night," the female snow leopard began, "the notorious criminal gang leader of the Felicity Firmament is in critical condition today as he was attacked during a drug bust late last night in Happytown. It is being reported that the ring leader, Javier Sanchez, was nearly burned alive by what is told to be a nighttime vigilante. He is alive at this moment and is in intensive care at Mercy Hospital. We'll follow with more words as the situation develops and the investigation continues."

The topic shifted to something less interesting, but it was enough to concern Murana greatly. She continued to sign the papers, not really noticing that her hind paw was tapping with increasing urgency on the carpet. Thoughts swirled through her head about Javier. That fox cop actually managed to put out her fire on the ocelot, quick enough to save the wretched cat's life. Her job remained unfinished and he was still alive, in intensive care and most likely under guard and surveillance. This was going to make things far more difficult.

Deciding on a course of action, she snapped her fingers, motioning with a paw for the laptop. "Ron, give me the computer, I need to type up something real quick please."

"Of course, Boss. Anything you need." He said quizzically, curious as to what she had in mind.

With intensity, she whipped up an official-looking document using a pre-existing template. She sent it off to the printer out in the main, lemming cubicle farm. Sweeping past Ron, she left the room and came back quickly with a lone sheet of paper in her paw. Signing it quickly, she handed it over to him. He gave it a once over, his countenance growing dim with each passing word read.

He looked up at her from the floor, "Boss? You're giving me ability to sign in your name?"

"Yep!" She smiled broadly, showing her row of teeth. "You said it yourself, that brilliant idea! Thank you so much! You've been extremely useful as a secretary. Keep up this pace and you just might get that raise sooner rather than later!"

She turned to leave but he called out, "Wait! Are you going to be coming back later on today?"

Shrugging her shoulders, she looked down at her secretary, "Not sure just yet. I do have a lot of errands to run and there is no telling how long each of those will take. So to be on the safe side, just continue working like you won't see me again until tomorrow morning." She waved before heading towards the door, turning around briefly to look at him. "Thanks again, Ron, for the brunch this morning. It was very delicious. Just don't…do that again without me accompanying you. I'd rather you not get hurt on my behalf in that neighborhood. I don't think I'd be able to forgive myself." She grinned before leaving, her tail swishing behind her.

"You're welcome, Boss." Ron murmured, his tail thumping on the floor. Frustrated, he looked up at the huge stack of papers awaiting on him. "Oh, screw me up the bass. This is going to be a long day." He exhaled, defeated.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – The Fox Den on Roaring St. – Against the Tundratown Border Wall_  
 _Tuesday – 12:02 PM – Overcast Skies_

Murana was thankful that the drizzle had stopped by the time she left her bank. With her supplies and tech running a bit low back at the homestead along with her vigilante suit being damaged on top of that, she needed to restock and recoup from her losses before handling Javier. The noon time lunch rush was in full force as she bumped and jostled her way across downtown towards the northern border wall that led into Tundratown. Sewing up her injuries helped tremendously in staving off the pain as she sped through the foot traffic.

The buildings on the northeast side weren't as shiny or as inviting as those in the city center just a mere stone's throw away, but they were still a far cry better than anything found in Happytown. There was far less debris and cracks in the pavement and sidewalks as the crowd thinned the further she got into the suburbs of Savannah; too small and too close to downtown to be registered as its own district, but too big to be referred to as anything else. The ratio of prey to predator became wide as tigers, foxes, wolves and more could be spotted slumming it on the sidelines, leaning up against rundown fencing, puffing on cigarettes and giving her leering stares.

Her goal was fixed straight ahead of her. A rather squat building butted up against the monumental wall bordering the next district over, the clear, chill frost visible in the air just beyond it. The brick and mortar façade was nothing to write home about, but for those who were privy to its interior, it was home to one of the hottest, unadvertised night clubs in Zootopia, The Fox Den. Primarily a predator-only establishment, it wasn't unheard of to see the occasional prey looking to experience a wilder side of nightlife.

A large, giraffe-printed truck was parked on the curb just outside the establishment, the back sliding door rolled up revealing rows of beer cartons. She smiled as she saw a familiar figure backing up down the metal ramp, two heavy crates in his arms. He was a fox, but unlike any she had ever met in her life. He was slightly taller than most foxes in Zootopia, nearly matching her size despite being the runt of the litter. With a primarily orange coat and white-furred front, he had a unique pattern of brown that encompassed his entire right ear and left hind paw and just the tip of his left ear.

Murana shook her head as she followed him into the building at a distance, watching him bop and groove to the headphones perched on his head. It was definitely a newer model, but the same old fashion style that he always wore. The vulpine sported a gaudy, red and black, plaid button-up shirt and a nice set of beige cargo pants. She had to admit, he had certainly beefed up since last she saw him; his shirt open down the middle revealing his six-pack abs and brown chevrons gracing his abdomen. For a fox at least, he was quite the specimen now.

The club was the same as before, nothing really had changed since she last set foot into the place. The bar and counter on the left held the same liquors as it did a decade ago, the stools before it carrying the same creases and holes in the upholstery. The huge rave dance floor lay bare and empty with perhaps a new coat of polished tile instead of the vinyl that once adorned it. Multiple seating and private booths lined the curving wall to the far edge of the dance space, each sheltered by a curtain one could draw closed. Then there was the DJ block up at the podium overlooking the floor and rave cages hanging from the ceiling. Beyond that led to the secret club rooms where less reputable things would happen.

Bathed in neon blue and pink lighting lining the trey ceiling covering the expanse of the dance floor, Murana followed that white-tipped tail all the way past the main business area and into the back store rooms. She trailed after the clinking sound of bottles, ending at last to the cooler door, pressure-sealed to keep the chill air in and the booze cold. She couldn't help but admire the swaying rump of the fox, watching it flick it back and forth in tune to whatever music was going on through his headphones.

Having settled the current crates of alcohol, the vulpine hit a rather egregious set of beats as he backed himself out of the fridge room, bopping his bum in rhythmic fashion. Murana shifted to the side to let him pass, but he suddenly swiveled backwards down the hall and bumped his tail right up against her front. His eyes closed and lost in the music, he spun around, grabbed her hips and began grinding against her like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"AJ, stop. Stop! Stop! Stop!" She tried pushing him away before batting at the headphones, knocking them off his ears and causing them to slip midway down his neck.

"What the hell, Cynth-, oh, Murana! What are you? Why are you? How are you doing?" He said, trying to recover, his anger dissipating the moment he saw who stood before him. Realizing where his hands and hips were, he let go and backed up several paces.

"What's the matter, fox? I've never seen you that speechless before. Cat got your tongue?" She simpered.

He guffawed, "Hardly. I haven't dated one of them in a long while." After a curious stare from Murana, he cleared his throat and scratched his head. "So how you been? It's been forever."

"It has." She managed to smile, shaking her head. "Seems like little has changed here."

"Well, I've changed. I'm hurt you didn't notice." AJ seemed mock offended, doing a not-so-subtle flex of his newly formed muscles. He only stood about a head shorter than Murana, abnormally tall for his species, but he was a bit more decked out in rippling biceps and well-formed pecs easily seen through his unbuttoned shirt.

"Oh, I noticed. Kind of hard to miss such a beefcake like you." She snarked, turned around to walk down the hall, forcing him to walk alongside.

"You like?" He flexed some more beside her, adjusting his headset around his neck. "Been working on my form. You should come to the gym sometime with me, you might like what you see."

"Really? I almost assumed you were compensating for the last time I laid the smackdown on you during an arm wrestling match." She threw back without hesitation, keeping her grin.

"Babe, I had yet to hit my prime. I'm in the peak of my life now, something you've clearly passed." He chuckled at his own joke. His expression dropped the moment he saw her stare at him. "Ah…look, I didn't mean-"

"Yeah, you did. I'm old by your standards, I know it. You were just hitting 20 and I was some hot, older female that was available and willing to enjoy some younger tail. Now that I've passed my prime and you've moved on, I'm no longer desirable." She folded her arms and glared at him, her tail fidgeting angrily.

"It was a bad joke. I really didn't mean it like that. You are still desirable to me." AJ tried to recover.

Shrugging, she dropped her arms and kept walking. "I don't know why I felt saying hi to you again was a good idea. I should have just went about my business and went straight to Billy."

"Billy? I thought you had stopped seeing him a while ago. Thought you had dropped all that…nighttime business." He paused, as they turned the corner into the main client space, overlooking the DJ stand.

She stopped to look at him, "You know that isn't true. You've watched the news."

"That I have." His face showing genuine concern. "You know I still care about you, always will. I worry about what you do at night. That one day I'll see your body on the news, abandoned in some gutter."

"All the more reason for me to see Billy." She explained. "To get the things I need to keep me alive while I do my job."

"Your job is at a bank, Murana." He circled back around in front of her, placing a paw on each of her shoulders. "Not out there hunting down criminals."

"It is what I need to do, AJ." She sifted out his grip and moved to the DJ block, placing a paw on the turntable.

He stepped up behind her, "Then why not come more often? If his talents and skills can help keep you alive out there, why not come visit more than you have? I've not seen you in years."

She tilted her head to the side ever so slightly, "Too many memories here, AJ. Too many to come back to."

This time, he placed his paws on her hips and drew close, letting his warmth seep into her back. "Then why don't we make new memories, Murana. Right here and now. Don't you remember all the good times we had here, right in this very spot while everyone else was obliviously high on booze and music?"

She allowed herself to sink into his embrace, enjoying the moment like the long years between were nothing. It would be so easy to just ignore the world and her responsibilities and just let AJ take her away to blissful ignorance. She took a deep breath and returned to reality. Shaking out of her reverie, she stepped away from him and gave a mournful smile, "They were good times, but they can't return, AJ. I'm married now and have a kid, haven't you heard?"

With a goofy look, he leaned on the turntable admiring her body, "So? That just makes you one hot MILF."

Sighing with tolerance, she gave him a look, "You forgot the fact I'm married."

He waved a paw in the air like it was a trivial nuisance, "Ah, details. So," he clapped his paws together, "did you want something to drink before you see Billy?"

She considered it a moment before inclining her head in agreement, "Why not? Lead the way."

"Great!" He whooped, boosting off the DJ block and giving her some finger guns before skipping off to the bar. "I must say, you are smoking in that purple. You've always had good taste, Murana."

"Thanks." She blushed. Even if she had made vows to Anthony, it still felt nice to feel appreciated for the female she was. Despite this, she knew to be careful around AJ. He had a wily way about him that lured many an unsuspecting female to his sheets. She wrapped a leg over a stool and scooted up to the counter before pointing at a bottle, "I'll have a tequila sunrise, please."

"Mhmm! That was always your favorite, babe!" AJ jived, rocking his hips back and forth as he turned the volume up on his headset around his neck. "If you see anything you like, feel free to call it out and I'll get it for you." He hollered back as he was mixing her drink, making extremely sure his gyrating hips were in full view and on display. "Seriously, Murana…anything at all." He chortled, doing some hip thrusts as he set the drink in front of her.

She took a swig before entertaining his mirth, "As world-shattering a time as it would be, I'm loyal to Anthony. I'm not going to leave him."

He leaned over the counter before rolling across it onto his back, looking up at her upside-down, "I know, but it doesn't hurt to try." He pawed at her playfully as she took another sip.

"What are you doing, AJ?" She looked at him bemused.

He pawed some more, "Being cute." He flipped back over right-side up. "Why? Is it working?" He flashed his teeth.

She snorted before downing the rest of the liquor. "Same old AJ. So how's business these days?"

He flopped back onto the bar as he looked bummed, "The usual. Fridays and Sundays seem to be our peak nights. Had a lot of good, new, fresh clientele come through here recently. I feel we might be finally appealing to the prey crowd. Many of the predator customers are going out and spreading the word of how friendly we are to all patrons. Because of this, I think I'll finally be able to pay off the mortgage on this building left to me by the previous owner later this year."

She reached out a paw over his, "That's wonderful, AJ. I'm happy your business is working out for you."

"And I'm glad you found someone that makes you happy." He returned with some regret in his voice.

"Yeah…well…" She began, but dropped the conversation. There was nothing more to say. They regarded each other for a time, enjoying the quiet moment together.

After a period of awkward silence, he pulled his paw away and coughed. "So, guess you need to get going and check in with Billy, right?"

"Right." She confirmed, getting up and walking behind the counter. "It was nice seeing you again, AJ."

He smiled weakly, "Of course." He squatted down and heaved on a metal loop linked to a wooden door hatch, covered surreptitiously by a mat to ease the strain on one's hind paws while standing for long periods of time. "And Murana?" She made a curious noise as she was halfway down the ladder leading below. "The fox will always sniff out the den that gives him the most comfort."

She held his gaze for a long time, "I know…"

Murana sniffed before resuming her descent and vanishing out of sight. He sat there looking down into the dim darkness before leaning up against the counter, reaching into his pocket and bringing out a small, black box he had kept on his person all these years. He couldn't remember later how long he had stared at it.

* * *

 _This was actually a very fun chapter to write. We get another cameo by Andy Lagopus while I have some more fun with his misery at dealing with Murana as well as set up key macguffin that'll come into play later. The next scene with Ron was a delightful thing to pull off, further playing these two characters off with each other and seeing how their blooming work relationship will grow in the future. An unorthodox partnership to be sure, but definitely a fun one to see and read on page. One of my favorite scenes in the entire Day 2 arc. Definitely wanted to set up a lot of stuff here that would play out in later chapters. Finally, we end with introducing a brand new character, AJ. He was originally going to be nothing but a cameo, but over time, he grew on me and he will have a far bigger role to play later on in IDIH, so best to set him up nice and early here to better acquaint readers with his playful, yet serious nature. Not much action in this chapter, but definitely a lot of fun and character exposition to go around!_


	6. Tuesday - A Darker Forecast - Afternoon

_Savannah Central – The Fox Den on Roaring St. – Against the Tundratown Border Wall  
_ _Tuesday – 12:27 PM – Overcast Skies_

Murana continued through the inky blackness, a dull, blue glow at the far end of the tunnel. She remembered the first time she ever went down this pathway after she initially made contact with Billy and he had invited her here to his workshop; at the time, she wasn't sure if she was being led into another trap and being taken as a prisoner, slave or worse. He had since proven his loyalty and trust to her over the past decade, but she still felt that little twinge of trepidation as she padded down the dark cement corridor.

At last, she reached the end and it opened up into an atrium of calcified tunnels carved out by water over the millennia. Undulating refractions danced along the lime blue walls of the cavern as the cement structure ended into more natural formed rock. She walked out onto a wooden deck overlooking a zigzagging staircase leading down to a small pier with a rather large cedar shack perched out over the edge of the underground river.

Softly making her way down the steps, she smiled at the large red houseboat moored to the end of the pier, its bow pointing down the waterway. Emblazoned on its side were the words in white, 'Foxglove III.' She frowned at the massive white patch job marring its pristine surface, a blemish in an otherwise pristine vessel.

Murana flicked her ears in the direction of the faded cedar shack. The sound of some clanking mixed with a few selective curses echoed off the walls. Rapping her knuckles on the door slightly ajar, she peered into the gloom, lit only by several lanterns perched on shelving and the light from the water seeping through the windows. A head of white popped up from behind some boxes piled three deep on an already creaking table that was in serious need of leg repair.

"Well, there's a sight for sore eyes." The silver fox grinned, flashing his row of pearly whites as he went back to what he was working on. "What brings you in here today, Murana? I haven't seen you in nearly two years."

"Oh, you know…the usual. A few more kunai, some more stink bombs, a new suit…" She said nonchalantly, hoping that he wouldn't cue in on the more expensive last option.

He poked his head up again, raising a brow at her, "I've given you two suits already. They're made to be durable. Either you've lost your touch and got them tore up or you've misplaced them, which I highly doubt. So which is it?"

"Let's just go with the former and leave it at that, Billy." She sighed, scraping a wooden chair out and settling in it rather roughly, folding her arms. "I'm in need of a new set. If you are worried about the money, you know I can pay you plenty for any replacements."

He waved off the sentiment before standing up, "You don't have to prove to me your funds. I know where you work. I'm just saying these suits take a lot of time and effort to make and sometimes the materials necessary can be quite tricky to find. Building you any replacements is going to take some time."

"So you don't have any spares on hand?" She asked worriedly.

"I didn't say that." He responded, gruffly padding over to a rack on the wall.

"So what's with the big patch job on your boat? Some bad heist gone wrong?" She snorted. She knew that Billy loved his boat more than anything. It was of sentimental value, considering that it was handed down to him by his late father. The fact that it was damaged at all was a bit shocking if you knew what kind of fox Billy was.

"I never discuss my clients' business with another. Let's leave it at that, Murana." He dismissed her with a paw wave, giving her a pointed look.

She was about to respond when she noticed something. "Ugh, seriously Billy?" Murana raised a paw up, hiding her eyes from the garish, red cargo shorts he was sporting.

Glancing down, he shrugged before continuing over to the pegboard of tools. "I never said I was at the height of fashion, Murana, only at the height of making sure my clients don't get killed."

With a grunt, he flipped up a wooden door panel on the workbench counter revealing a mess of wrenches, bullets and various other metal odds and ends. After some clinking around, he pulled out a small switch and pressed the obvious red button on it. A huge, thunderous roar echoed in the shack as several gears and chains could be heard. Within seconds, the pegboard flipped vertically 180 to reveal a plethora of guns and weapons. She stepped off to the side as a bookcase to her right slide open to reveal a small safe room built of solid steel.

"Really? Doesn't this seem a bit antiquated?" She waved at the entire, revealed operation as she folded her arms.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Billy smirked, striding over to the fortified room. He beckoned her over to join him inside, pulling a blanket off one of the center piece pedestals. On a squat stand, she beheld a very sleek, crimson red suit very similar to the one she had torn. "Thankfully for you, I didn't alter much to it other than a few improvement modifications."

Murana had been admiring a few pieces of tech hanging on the walls, but turned to Billy at his explanation. "Oh? I'm flattered that you've been working on a new suit for me even though I hadn't made any payments recently."

He walked around the podium, grabbing a small attachment before linking it up just under the wrist portion of the suit. "I figured you'd be back sooner or later. After all, what I provided you wouldn't last forever. I know a good, returning customer when I see one." They both shared a smile. "Anyway, I've been noticing you leaving hanging threads all over the city."

"Threads?" She queried, unsure of what he meant.

"Yes, your discarded grappling cables. The old belt design is a bit outdated and could use some refinements. I'm surprised you've made do on the supply of hooks and cable you received last time." He shook his head in admiration. "You really are a creature of frugality. I like that. However, I recognize that it was sloppy design and that something a bit more conservative was needed."

"Well, even if all the hanging cables are so high up that most mammals can't get to them, I can understand the concern for just leaving them there as a trail of breadcrumbs to follow." Murana could agree with his statement. Sure they were small and barely noticeable if one were to look up at the buildings she traversed, but if found, they could definitely be questioned if brought to the proper authorities.

"Exactly. So instead, I molded these two gauntlets for each of your wrists to hang on the underside of your forearm. They're fairly flat and shouldn't pose a big profile while you are out doing your acrobatics." He flipped the arm over to show a small button that traveled up towards the bottom center of where the palm would be. "You just press this button and a spearhead will shoot out from this bottom storage unit and impale itself into almost any surface any building in Zootopia is made out of. It'll shoot out hook blades once embedded and you swing as normal."

"That's a neat trick, but how do you get the cable back or detach it?" She couldn't really fathom how this was all that much better.

Billy raised a finger up, winking at her, "There's the beauty of it. Just press this button again when you are done with it and it'll retract the hook blades and zip back into your storage pouch underneath your forearm. This is why I provided two of these, one for each wrist, so you don't ever have to stop swinging if you don't have to."

Murana low whistled at this, "I do believe you've outdone yourself, Billy. This will most certainly come in handy."

He gave a small bow before slipping the suit off, folding it neatly and handing it over to her. "Made a few other adjustments to it as well, more specifically I increased the layers of filament of the suit making it far easier to ward off knives and claws." He sniffed the air around her a bit, "Something, I feel, would be quite necessary for you."

She lowered her ears, glaring at him, "It was an accident and it won't happen again."

Billy ignored her petulance, "I'm sure. You've been doing a great job for many years now. I have complete faith that what happened truly was an accident."

She unconsciously bared her teeth, not knowing if she should take what he said as flippancy or sincerity. Dropping her anger, she stuffed the suit underneath her arm before following him back out to the shack proper. "So do you have any more musk spray and bombs?" She asked hopefully.

"You mean there isn't enough already on you? I can smell it heavily still, like the lingering scent of rain on warm pavement. You might want to switch shampoo brands. You could try mine since I've been working so much on these things." He chuckled before sitting down on a stool looking back at her with indifference.

A small growl rumbled in Murana's throat, "I'm serious, Billy. I can't go back out there again without something to cover up my scent."

"And how would your musk supplier feel if he knew you were using his scent to mask your own? That he could potentially be tagged as murderer to all these felons and criminals?" He pointed out casually.

She leaned up against the table, thinking on it as if she hadn't considered that before. Granted, she didn't go out as often these days to hunt these vile mammals, but the excuse of some poor sap getting drenched in the same skunk stench being linked to each of the hits could only last so long. They could potentially link the scent back to her son if they got the right person on the case. She did recall that they recently got a new fox on the force, one of Anthony's new buddies. He could be trouble.

"So I take that as a no, then." She set the suit onto the wood before walking around the corner of the table to face Billy directly.

"I didn't say that either. I do have one canister left of spray, but I have no more musk left to work with. If you would just give me more, I wouldn't be left working on nothing but fumes. It's not every day that I can just go up to some random skunk and just ask them for some of their musk. Wouldn't really go over well with the general mustelid populace." He crossed his arms, flopping on his black, bowler cap.

Murana sighed with frustration, "It's not really going to be that easy to get for me anymore. He and I have become rather estranged lately."

"He?" Billy's curiosity was piqued. Up until now, he hadn't even heard what gender her skunk supplier even was. It was that sort of trivial detail that had been killing him for years now. "So had a bit of a falling out, did you? You know, I'm actually quite good at repairing broken negotiations. If you don't mind leaving the middle man out of this, I could talk to him directly and see if I could procure some musk-"

"Absolutely not!" Murana stood up tall, bearing down on the fox. "To respect…his privacy, I'm going to be moving on to find another musk supplier. It might be some time before I can come back and bring you more to work with." She lied, cursing inwardly at her mistake. She trusted Billy to a point, but she was not about to let her own son be exposed to this arms dealer.

He raised his brow at her sudden outburst, clearly he had struck a nerve and this particular skunk of hers meant a good deal more to her than she let on. Feigning ignorance of what was revealed, he shrugged his shoulders again and looked away, "All right then. I was just trying to make things easier for both of us. If you were to just tell me his name, I could contact him and have full crates of stuff ready for you when you got back. It truly is a great scent."

"What?" She said, flabbergasted, she didn't think she heard him right.

"What?" He repeated dully.

After a moment, "I do not discuss my client's business either, to include their personal information." She said with finality.

"Touché." Billy returned. "Well, you can go gather your things here. Just make sure the funds are in my account by close of business or else…"

"Or else what?" Murana scoffed. Granted, she had yet to pay for this latest stash of things he was giving her, but it still seemed odd that he made this threat. She knew it wasn't idle, something must have him spooked that he would need this money soon. Billy wasn't letting it show though, he was savvy like that. Just another reason she liked working with him.

"…Or else I send my bruiser to take care of you." He flashed another tooth filled grin.

She pointed up above them, "You mean AJ? First off, since when did he become your bruiser? And second, he wouldn't hurt a fly, let alone me." She laughed it off.

"Maybe before, but now things have changed. Any protection from him you might have had is gone." He let that stew for a moment before proceeding, "I never could figure out why you two separated."

So that's how it was, she confirmed. "Is that what this is all about? This hostile bluff? Did AJ put you up to this? Did he ask you about me?" She couldn't believe the gall of that music-loving fox upstairs, using her own business partner to weed out information about her feelings.

Billy stared back at her unfazed, "I don't discuss my client's…"

"…business. I know." She finished for him. "Whatever Billy, keep your secrets. I have mine. The funds will be in your account before the day is done."

"Much obliged, Ma'am." He bent the tip of his hat down in salute. He watched her a few minutes more, turning back to his original project he had started before she arrived.

"Billy?" She called out at the doorway, her gear and weapons stuffed in a brown paper handle bag, dangling in one paw. "Thanks."

"Just doing my job, Murana." He replied without turning to look at her.

"Not just for that, but for helping me at all." She stared wistfully at the ship moored on the water, remembering an earlier model of it carrying her bruised and battered body to safety many years ago. "For believing in what I do."

At this, he stopped and swiveled his head at her. "I may not agree how you do it, Murana, but I believe in getting these vile people off the streets. Your interests coincide with mine. Nothing more."

"One of these days, I'm going to catch you caring a lot more than you show, Billy." She smiled, giving him a wink.

"Maybe so, but today is not that day." He riposted dryly. With another nod, he went back to his business as he heard her footpaws getting fainter. A glimmer of a smile passed over his muzzle.

* * *

 _Downtown – Mercy Hospital – Southern Savannah off Oasis Plaza  
_ _Tuesday – 2:02 PM – Dark Overcast Skies_

Murana moved with purpose. She had a flowing coat of white trailing behind her as she swiftly navigated through the sterile halls. It hadn't been hard to secure for herself a doctor's coat, clipboard, pen and a pair of glasses. She entered the hospital like any other patient visitor, looking lost and worried. She obediently waited in the sitting area as she was told until she spied what she had been looking for.

A female kudu caught her eye. Covering her striking, tawny pelt with a gleaming white coat, Murana assumed correctly that the doctor was coming on shift. She swiftly stood up and slipped in silently through the closing door as the kudu badged in. She tailed her for several minutes, acting like she belonged. Not a single soul questioned her presence in the halls.

The moment the doctor stepped into a small side office to set down her things, Murana immediately wrapped an arm around the kudu's neck, slapping a paw over her snout to keep her from crying out. The prey's legs kicked out viciously at first, her entire body screaming in panic and fear at this unknown assailant. Her jerks and kicks began to grow faint as the lack of oxygen to her brain ceased. Soon, she lay still in the wolf's arms.

Releasing her and settling her down into the chair, Murana check the doctor's nostrils, ensuring that her breathing had resumed. Nodding to herself that the kudu was safely passed out, she stripped her of her coat and swiped the glasses off her face. She grimaced at the tight fit of them on her broad skull, but she finally made them rest semi-comfortably across her snout. Picking up a pen and notepad off her cubicle desk, she swept out into the hallway to find her stationary quarry.

She passed by several nurses, each one glancing at her oddly. They didn't recall a wolf being a doctor at Mercy, but in the end they shrugged and carried about their business. Perhaps she was a new transfer from another district? She sidestepped into a medicine cabinet, sifting quickly through various vials until she found exactly what she was looking for: painkillers. Taking a few and stuffing them into her coat pocket, she left the room in search of information.

Bowing her head in greeting at her 'fellow' colleagues, she sat down at the nearest available computer and was relieved to see that it was already logged in. That was good, she didn't have to hack the thing in public. She located the patient listing and quickly scanned for her target of interest, finding both the floor and room he was in.

"There you are." She whispered to herself, a smile spreading across her lips.

"Ma'am?" Murana looked up to see a rather large caribou regarding her warily. "Are you new here? I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting."

Murana's mouth widened more. Might as well go with what the caribou assumed rather than make up something far more bogus. "Yeah," She giggled, "What gave it away?"

"Well, you're not wearing your badge for starters. That and I haven't seen any preda-I mean, any wolf doctors here." The female corrected herself, seemingly to admonish herself for her prejudice.

Murana let her smile lessen, covering up some of her teeth so as to not be as intimidating. "Oh my, you're right! I completely forgot it at my desk! Sorry about that. Just got transferred here just last night from over in Tundratown. I'm still learning my way around here."

The caribou leaned over the counter, crossing her hooves genially, looking a bit more relieved. "That's quite all right, hun. Mercy Hospital can be quite the big place. You from Kravenhall down by the docks?"

Murana wasn't fully aware of the place, but she did know that hospital was over in Rainforest District at least. She clicked her tongue in response, "That's the one. Now if you'll excuse me, got a patient to get to and also make a quick stop and pick up my badge!"

"Of course. Welcome again to Mercy….er…what was your name?" She felt rather ashamed to not having asked already.

"Illyana." She shook the caribou's hoof.

"Grisele." The caribou replied happily.

With a wink, Murana got up from the chair, closed out her search and waved at her new 'friend' before heading down the corridor to the elevators. She stood in silence, her mind already on the immediate future as the numbers in the elevator slowly rose. She calmly stepped out on the 14th floor of the building, filtering through several nurses and a janitor as they got on the elevator to head down.

It was unusually quiet on this floor. She would have preferred a bit more din to mask any potential noise that could occur. She stopped at his room, glancing down the hallway to ensure she had no witnesses before entering. She found the ocelot wrapped in a full body cast of gauze, leaving only his eyes and nose open to the elements. He appeared to be sleeping, but still very much alive.

She sidled up next to his bedside, taking extra care to shut the door behind her and locking it. She spoke in soothing tones as she gently caressed his arm, hanging awkwardly over the bed railing. "Javier…oh, Javier. It's time to wake up now."

The cat's eyes fluttered open slowly, as if awakening from a deep, medicated slumber. It took a few moments of adjustment as his eyes focused on her. His eyes bulged at the sight of her. He began making a low moan, too weak to really travel far, but horribly awful like a hairball stuck in his throat. He made efforts to move away from her on the bed, each motion feeling like daggers being driven into his burned skin, causing him to wail.

"Shhh, it's okay, Javier. I'm not going to burn you this time around. That'd be a bit too obvious, wouldn't it?" She gave him a leering grin all the while petting his arm, the effect chilling him to the bone.

"Yes, it would be a bit obvious, not to mention sloppy." A calm voice resounded in the quiet room.

Kunai immediately leapt into her paws as she faced the voice directly across from her on the other side of the bed. The wraparound curtain had been blocking the chair by the window. A small paw shifted it aside as she looked upon the face of a bunny she had almost long since forgotten. His cunning smile matched his outfit that strangely resembled a tuxedo, complete with bowtie. His grey fur ended at the tops of his ears with black stripes at the tips and coming across his cheeks from the back of his head.

"Jack Savage." She breathed, quite startled to see him again.

"Indeed, Murana. Long time, no see." He smiled cordially, brushed off a fleck of lint on his leg as he crossed it over the other.

"What are you doing here?" She didn't move a muscle, still tense and taut in her pose, ready to leap upon the rabbit at a moment's notice.

"Isn't it obvious?" He leaned back further into the chair, resting his paws in his lap. "After witnessing and hearing about some poor kitty being burned alive last night, yet somehow surviving due to the efforts of some courageous fox cop, it was quite easy to deduce that you would show up here today and finish the job."

"Witness…?" She asked, her grip flexing on the cool metal within them. Her mind raced back over the events of the previous night, locking on to a singular moment as she was awaiting her mark to appear. "You were in the window, in the building across the street. Watching me."

"Very good, Murana." He clucked his tongue as he winked at her. "Good to see that your senses have not dulled over time."

She narrowed her eyes, "What is it you want? You going to try and stop me from killing this cat?" She inclined her head subtly towards Javier, whose pupils were shifting frantically back and forth between the two of them.

"Heavens no!" He chortled, waving a paw at her as he suppressed the remainder of his mirth. "Far be it from me to interrupt a mark. That would be rude. By all means, kill away."

"Then why are you here?" She growled, pressing the question.

"I'm here to repay a favor and do you a service." He rejoined promptly, not changing his expression.

"Jack…you and I both know where we come from. There are no favors and there are no services, not without money." She spat at him, her temper rising with each passing moment with him.

"Come now, Murana. No need to shout. I'm here to honor our friendship that we cultivated over the many years we were in service together as partners." Jack looked sincere. If it was one thing she could be sure of, Jack wasn't a liar.

"So out with it then. I don't have all day." She said with acrimony.

He straightened his suit before standing up and stepping towards her, looking up over the bed at the wolf. "I'm here, as you know, on the orders of our boss…oh right, my boss." He ruminated on that line of thought with a grin before clearing his throat. "Rosco has put out a hit on you and he has tasked me to carry it out."

"How gracious of you to come tell me that you're going to kill me, Jack. Such a great way of honoring our friendship." She snarked.

He looked away with weariness, "Murana, I could have just killed you out there on the rooftop. You know I had the shot and opportunity. You were a sitting cub out there waiting for Javier here. Could have easily popped one in your skull, but I am doing the honorable thing and upholding our previous partnership by giving you fair warning of my intentions…even if Rosco does not want me to."

"So is this it then? Now that I know, are you going to try and kill me here?" She took a step back, awaiting a negative response.

Jack merely shook his head. "It wouldn't be sporting, Murana. Come on, you know how I operate. When I nail you, you'll never see me coming, just like how we were trained. However, I see that you've lost some of your touch. This is twice now that you failed to recognize that I was nearby, twice that you could have died at my paws. These years of being on your own, not training daily like we used to has clearly taken its toll on your skills."

"You going to leave, let me contemplate my future demise and kill Javier now, or are you going to just talk me to death?" She countered with venom. She considered trying to take the bunny down, but knew that he was packing heat somewhere on that small frame of his. Remembering how well he held himself with a gun, she wasn't going to chance a scene here.

"I feel my purpose here is finished." Jack sniffed, looking around the nondescript hospital room. He straightened his tie before walking around the foot of the bed, completely aware of Murana turning to face his every movement. "I would advise you to unplug his life support rather than inject painkiller into his IV."

"Why is that?" She questioned, a bit uncertain now.

Seeing Jack here, of all places, had completely set her off balance and her nerves were shot as a result. Murana had been an assassin over a decade ago under the employ of a ruthless gang leader, Rosco, whose operations originated from the Nocturnal District beneath the streets of Zootopia. She earned a lot of her skills during her extensive time carrying out marks for that brutal crime lord, many times working alongside Jack Savage since it was common practice back then to put out two assassins for one mark. For if one should fail, the other would succeed. Leaving Rosco unexpectedly did not endear herself to him and he never forgot slights like that.

"Well, if you bothered to take the time to read his chart," He picked it up out of the plastic holder on the side of the railing before handing it to her. "You'll have read that you did quite a number on Javier last night to include crushing his ribs to the point that he has collapsed lungs. These machines," he indicated the rather large breathing apparatus set up alongside the ocelot with tubes going up through his nose. "are all that are keeping him alive since he can't seem to draw in breath on his own."

"He's also due for surgery later this evening." She noted as she scanned through his file.

"Exactly. And since you now have your paw prints all over those vials of pain killer I know you have in your pocket, it would be an easy matter of printing it and tracing it back to you once they discover that was the method of his death." He shook his head. "Honestly Murana, I expected better out of you. I had almost hoped you would provide me a challenge, but it seems all I'm going to be up against is a has-been."

"Why do you have to be so cruel?" She snarled, ears flattened back.

"It's in the name, darling." He unlocked and opened the door, he tilted his head back to look at her. "Better hurry up though, something tells me not a lot of predators work at Mercy and word has gotten around that there is a wolf prowling these halls. I'll see you soon, Murana." He shook his bunny tail before walking out and shutting it gently behind him.

"Arrogant little shit." She exhaled, putting down the knives and stowing them away into slit pockets in her clothes. Shaking her head from that surreal experience, she considered Javier again. "Well, thanks to our little friend there, it seems you won't have the peaceful death that I had promised you earlier. Things would have been so much simpler had you just burned to death."

The ocelot's mews began to come back with more fervor, his entire body wracked with pain now as she bent low to navigate the maze of cords until she found the one that led to his breathing machine. With a small grunt, she unplugged it from the wall and left it hanging just slightly in the wall, as if it had been kicked loose accidently. Rising up to look down on the small form of Javier, she gave him a self-satisfied grin.

"Now the souls of Fresia Lorian and Tyler Mason will finally be at peace. May you feel the punishment of your crimes, Javier Sanchez. Goodbye." She closed her eyes as she heard his gasping cries, knowing that he was slowly suffocating at having to manually try to breathe in the air he so desperately needed.

"It is done." She let out her exhaustion, opening her eyes to look upon the dead form of Javier, his last throes of twitching subsiding. It was most likely a painful death, no less than he deserved. She wasn't sure which was worse, burning alive or suffocating. Either way, justice was done. She was confident that he would not be coming back a second time.

Content that her job was finished, she pivoted on her hind paw and left the way she came in. She took care, per Jack's warning, to dump the vials of painkillers back into the medicine closet where she found them. Nobody would be the wiser that she had touched them if they were all where they should be to begin with. She waved bye to Grisele on the way out, telling her to have a good rest of her shift.

She moved ahead without thinking anymore of Javier. That was done and passed. She had something else to attend to that demanded her attention now. She set her sights back over to the boundary wall, the frosty air rising in the afternoon sky.

* * *

 _Downtown – Tail Hollow Orphanage – Happytown District – Corner of Deluge Ave and 34th St.  
_ _Tuesday – 4:32 PM – Dark Overcast Skies / Drizzling Rain_

Murana furrowed her brow, lost in thought. She was working her way back through Savannah from Tundratown, smelling the noxious fumes of Happytown. She kicked off the lingering grab of a slum dweller begging for scraps as she marched down the sidewalk towards Max's orphanage. She knew better than to take side streets in this part of town. Heading off the main roads meant trouble in this district.

Her visit to the Pale Moon Orphanage was disconcerting, bringing up memories of something long past. Memories she'd rather forget. The situation there was awful. It was as if the entire roof of the building was completely blown away by some explosive incident. Debris and rubble were everywhere. All the older cubs were missing, every single one of them kidnapped. The younger ones were strangely spared. That was not the worst thing she discovered.

The matron there was absolutely terrified and couldn't really be conversed with reliably. She kept babbling on about cruel mammals with swords and cutlasses, some carrying old time muskets and other instruments of death. What alarmed her most was the description of their leader, riding down like a demon from an iron beast of burden that seemingly suspended itself in the air as if by magic. She raved that they spared no quarter and killed anyone who got in their way of stealing all the children.

What Murana found interesting was that the attack on Pale Moon coincided with the very electrical storm that was hovering over it during her hit on Javier the previous night. She mused that perhaps these storms weren't as random or atmospheric in nature after all, but something manufactured and deliberate. She had nothing to go off of on this crazy theory, but that detail couldn't be ignored.

She was jolted to her senses when she heard the female panther's voice emerging from the open doorway before her. She had been so absorbed in her thoughts that she wasn't aware of where she was, her hinds paws on autopilot through the city, almost forgetting why she had come to Tail Hollow to begin with.

"Murana? You here to see Max again? Have you reconsidered adoption?" The Matron inquired hopefully.

"I'm…not sure yet." Murana admitted, feeling great shame in doing so.

The panther groaned at the news, placing a paw over her breast. "Oh dear, that's not good at all. I don't know what you said to that boy. He seems completely unwilling to do much of anything. We tried to get him to eat something today, but he wasn't having any of it. Just wants to spend his hours up in his room being by himself." She glanced up the rickety stairs towards the boys rooms. "Maybe it isn't such a good idea that you see him today."

Murana placed a paw on the Matron's shoulder. "I'll be making my decision tomorrow, Matron. I just want to talk to him one more time to be sure of something. May I?" She beamed at the panther, trying to settle her rattled calm.

With a weak nod, she stepped back to allow Murana entrance. "Just…don't break his heart again, Murana. I don't think he could take another visit like that again."

Murana confirmed her acknowledgment of the Matron's words. It was more like she couldn't take another visit like that again. Murana didn't say anything to her, especially considering she ran the entire orphanage, but she knew Max had given her a fair bit of trouble since being inducted here. Him lashing out or being difficult to manage after her visits probably wasn't helping matters. She felt it was selfish of the Matron to feel that way, but she couldn't blame her with having to handle all these charges and expect a tidy ship.

She padded up the steps carefully, cognizant of their weakening state. Even with her yearly salary as bank CEO, it wouldn't be enough to renovate this building. It would actually be best to demolish it completely and rebuild it anew. She sighed inwardly as she reached the top of the stairs, spotting a raggedy doll, colors faded from either extreme use or mistreatment. Even the toys here were hand-me-downs that she couldn't fathom how many kids' paws had been on them.

Walking across the landing, she entered the boys' hall and stopped just outside the door to Max's room. It was slightly ajar, indicating that he was still inside. She quietly opened it and peered into the gloom. He had the shades drawn over the window, slivers of light illuminating the darkness from the sides. It seemed the room was even more disheveled than when she had last left it. On his bed, facing away from her, was the form of Max. She was unsure if he was asleep or not.

"So did you figure it out?" His voice droned into the inky blackness.

She winced at his lifeless voice. It seemed like he had already given up hope in her before she had even started. Worse still, she feared he might be right. "Figure what out?" She spoke hesitantly.

His striped tail swished irritatedly across the bed covers. "Your life. Did you uncomplicate it? Or did you come here to tell me you can't adopt me?"

Murana dragged out the wooden chair from beside his nightstand before flipping it around and sitting in it backside front. "Not exactly that. No. Things have gotten a bit more difficult of late. I actually came here to tell you that I've made a decision that I do plan on taking you home with me."

"Just not today." He stated flatly, not bothering to flip over to face her. "Or this week, or this month."

She dropped her head onto her arms, wanting to cover her face with them. "Yeah, I guess you are right, Max. I would be a terrible mother. What was I thinking that I could be good enough for another cub when I did such a fantastic job of alienating my first?"

This comment did prompt Max to turn over and regard her hind paws. "You have another cub?" He wasn't aware that Murana already had another child.

Wiping a small tear from her eye, she smiled in remembrance of Steven. "Yeah, he's been with me for many years. Found him as a young kit and he's clung to me ever since."

"He's not your own?" Max thought on this for a moment. He had originally thought that it would be of her flesh and blood.

She laughed softly, "No, he's not. I never thought myself the motherly type, but he just seemed to grow on me. I wouldn't change my time with him for the world, though." She looked off in a daze, recalling the times she had spent with Steven, saddened that it had come to how it was now. "He has since left my den."

"So I'm a replacement." His eyes flitted over her face briefly before latching onto her ear.

Her gaze snapped back to him. "No! That's not it at all, Max. I just feel a certain type of connection to you. Don't you feel it too? All the times we would hang out and visit the library or the park?"

Max sat up and leaned against the wall, wrapping his tail around him. "Things we don't do anymore." He fired with impunity, uncertain if he fully knew the effect it had on Murana.

Taken aback, she grew frustrated. She could stand her ground against criminals and lethal assassins from the dark depths of Zootopia, but she couldn't lift a finger to defend herself against a small child. "I know it seems I've lost interest in you or that I don't care, but that is not true. I wish I could explain all the issues I'm dealing with in my life that makes all this so very hard for me."

"I guess it is hard to love trash like me." He pulled his knees up to his chin before enfolding his arms around them, closing himself off from her, almost like a physical wall.

"Max Thrash." She said firmly. "What did I say about talking down about yourself? You are not trash!"

"You can't tell me what to do or think. You aren't my mom. You refuse to be!" He shot back. This time making firm eye contact with her. He only held it for the briefest moment, but it was like a shotgun blast to the heart. "Stop coming here and promising me your love when you don't mean it!"

Murana choked back the tears that were threatening her. She looked away to see the lone item in his small, mesh trash can. The library card she had given him lay discarded and unused at the bottom, thrown away because the gesture was meaningless to Max, regardless of her feelings in giving it to him.

After a lengthy silence, Max added quietly, "They're going to move me, you know."

"What was that, Max?" She sniffled, searching his face.

"Matron can't afford to keep me here anymore. She says I would have better chances somewhere else." The first trace of emotion creeped into his voice, recognizing the hopelessness of his own situation.

"Did she say where?" Murana swallowed back the knot in her throat. Max merely shook his head, looking down at his tail. "Did she say when?"

"I heard them say tomorrow." He answered.

She tapped the side of the chair a few times, thinking on the timelines. Things were looking quite dire for Max. It was no secret that Matron preferred easier orphans to take care of, and Max's inability to mesh well with the rest of the kids here did him no favors. She was also in no position to take him right away.

Troubles with Anthony and Steven, alongside issues she was still resolving at her job, with the threat of death looming over her head from Jack made the entire situation of adopting a new family member highly unattractive right now. Yet she only had one day, if that, to claim Max or he might be moved to a place she may not be able to find or track given the new legal privacy laws.

Murana let out a low moan, covering her face with a paw. "That's simply not enough time. Even if I manage to get the paperwork completed, I don't even have my place prepared for you."

Sensing some hope in her consideration, Max's ears came up. "I don't mind sleeping on the floor or in a chair. I can be comfortable just about anywhere."

"No…it's not just that." She sighed, looking back at him with regret. "My husband, Anthony, he isn't exactly doting on young ones that aren't wolf cubs. He would not take kindly to you coming home with me tonight. Not after the fight we had this morning."

"Oh…" His ears drooped again, his eyes trailing down her snout. "So why don't you just have cubs with him then? Why bother coming here at all? Why bother with me?"

Her eyes drooped at his feelings of self-deprecation. "Max, I can't. There is something wrong with me. I cannot have cubs, even if I tried. I came here because you were special to me, Max. Out of all the other orphans here, you were the one that stole my heart."

"Yet your heart prefers to keep Anthony happy rather than yourself." He stated; a truth that seemed evident.

"It's not that simple. Yes, I want to salvage my rocky marriage, but I also want to feel needed." Murana rested her chin back on her arms, looking wistfully at Max, "I've since missed feeling wanted when Steven was around, hugging my legs and wanting me to take care of him daily. Anthony is self-sufficient with his job and rarely needs anything from me. So I'm just there, to warm his bed and be there to support him, but the spark of fire that drew us together isn't exactly burning bright at the moment."

"I understand." Max slumped back against the wall, defeated. "You want to, but you can't. It just isn't our time."

"Max?" She tilted her head, wondering what was going on in his head.

"Goodbye Murana. I really did enjoy our time together." He began, a few tears beginning to form at the edges of his eyes.

"Max, don't say that. Don't say no…" Her breath held in her throat.

"I'm saying no to help you, Murana." This time he fought to keep eye contact with her. "I am getting rid of one more thing that is stressing you out." He paused before continuing, studying the array of emotions flickering across her face. "It would be nice…if sometime in the future we could meet again. Until then, let's leave it at this."

The tears coming freely now, Murana let out a sob. He wasn't even hers yet and somehow she felt like she just lost something infinitely precious. Why did she feel this strongly about wanting someone to love and care for? Max filled a hole that was missing since Steven moved out and now that yawning abyss was opening up again and there was no way to patch it up this time.

"You are stronger than I, Max." She cried, wiping away a tear with a paw. She nodded finally, "Alright, I will honor your wish, but you bet on your striped tail that I will come find you when I'm ready. Even if you are already adopted by someone else, I will come visit you. You hear me?" She waggled a finger at him.

He chuckled a bit at this, finding the humor in the situation despite his own tears threatening his calm. No one else had gotten him to react like this. He was surprised himself at the tears he was crying. "Yeah. Thanks Murana."

"Mura will do, Max." She smiled. Standing up, trying her best to keep it under control, she pushed the chair back to its original position before walking up and ruffling the fur on Max's head. "Keep thrashing, little guy."

Max reached up a paw to hold onto her wrist before letting it fall as she pulled away. "I will, Mura."

They stared at each other a few moments longer, then she turned around and walked out. There was nothing more to be said. An opportunity for both of them had passed. Trying to fight against the inevitable tide was drawing out the pain longer and Max was smart enough to see it first. As much as she was happy that he ended it when he did, her heart broke that it had to end up this way. In the end, she could blame no one but herself for how it shook out. Just like everything else in her life, she was always failing. Why was she just no good for anyone?

* * *

 _The first scene of this chapter was actually originally introduced in the previous one, and the first scene of that chapter was originally in the first part of Day 2. After trying to split this day up into four different parts, I realized it made this section altogether short. So I moved the final scene of part 1 to the first of part 2 and split this scene into two pieces. It felt more of a better sense of chapter closure with leaving AJ alone like that for part 2 than flowing right into this part with Billy Silva. For Billy, he was a very difficult character to write for since I didn't have a clear handle on him. I had to get with his owner/creator many times to make sure I got his personality and what he does just right. In the end, it turned out to be more of an expositional piece than anything profound, but it set the stage for future events. The middle scene with Jack Savage was one of the best scenes and the one I had the most fun writing. Introducing him in a completely different light than how I did in Death Becomes You was a treat. This is an earlier, more heartless Jack than we know from the other story. Maybe it'll be this story that changes him to be the way he is in DBY? Finally, the final scene with Max was a continuation from the one in Day 1. We needed to finalize the the relationship and ultimate decision between these two before future events shake things up, which will happen sooner than you think._


	7. Tuesday - A Darker Forecast - Evening

_Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A  
_ _Tuesday – 7:57 PM – Dark Overcast Skies / Pouring Rain_

Murana had just finished a bowl of noodles from the local Red Panda Noodle Express. It wasn't anything to write home about, but it filled the belly and that was what mattered right now to her. She didn't feel altogether willing to come home and face Anthony tonight. She knew he'd already be at home chugging away a cold one, most likely watching some sports. She highly doubted Zoey would be around given their altercation earlier, but it was hard to tell with their neighbor.

The sky had opened up and the downpour was commencing in earnest. She cursed inwardly, berating herself for not stopping by her bank to pick up a trench coat to at least cover her suit. It was getting soaked through and her belly cuts weren't being helped by the damp wetness. The electrical thunderstorms were starting to brew again over Zootopia. This time they seemed a bit closer than they were the previous night, almost hovering right overhead in Savannah Central.

A buzz in her pocket caused her to shuffle to the side under a storefront awning to prevent her cell from getting wet from the rain. She tapped it on and saw who it was. She rolled her eyes and sighed as she brought it to her ear and answered it, "Yes, Ron?"

"Boss!" His voice boomed through the speaker, making her cringe at the volume of it. "Where were you this afternoon? We had a ton of new accounts and filing that were quite unexpected! I had to figure out half of it all by myself without you around. I thought you said you were coming back here today."

"Here?" She said incredulously. "You're still at the bank?"

"Yes, Boss." He affirmed matter-of-factly.

"Ron, we close at six. What are you still doing there?" She barked. "I'm not paying for overtime if that is what you're going after!"

"No, no, Boss! I was just…well, you didn't really specify my work hours and being the boss and all, I figured you usually work odd hours to begin with: coming early and leaving late sort of thing. So I was just staying behind in anticipation that you'd return before we closed." He explained succinctly, almost rehearsed in the ease of his reasoning.

"Be that as it may, I am on salary and you are hourly. You are to work from eight to six every day." She commanded, somewhat upset to be having to clarify this for her secretary. "Things came up today that I couldn't get out of and didn't I say earlier that I probably wasn't going to come back in?"

"Oh right, of course…but I was hoping you'd at least pop back in since I had a few questions here about certain aspects of our accounting methods with regards to the offshore accounts." Ron began, the tone in his voice indicating he was getting ready to unleash a lot more.

"Ignore them for now." She said quickly to cut him off. "I appreciate what you did with them yesterday, but for now they are not your concern anymore. Is there anything else you wish to ask, Ron? It is getting late, you should be going home and I need to rest for tomorrow."

"All right, Boss." She could just sense his whole body sag on the other end of the phone. "See you tomorrow then." He clicked off.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she plopped the phone back into her pocket and took stock of herself before stepping back out into the pouring rain. Flattening her ears back, she stuffed her hands into her pockets as she strode across the sidewalks, sidestepping multiple mammals huddled underneath their flimsy umbrellas. She stepped into the foyer of her apartment complex sopping wet, shaking off the droplets in the designated area meant for such a purpose. Satisfied she had removed most of the offending liquid, she headed up the elevator to her penthouse floor.

She gave her keys a jangle, turning them in the lock as she opened the door. Walking in, she spied a rather solemn Anthony on the couch doing exactly what she had expected him to be doing. His eyes drifted over to her, a small frown etched onto his muzzle, before they wandered back to the screen. It was clear he had probably plowed through an entire six-pack before she arrived and was already on his second helping. This was not going to end well.

"And my better half returns home." He said under his breath, loud enough for her to hear, before taking another swig.

"Good to see you too, Anthony." She replied icily, dropping any pet names she would have used in any other situation for him.

"Late night at work, I take it?" He asked, his eyes still glued to the screen.

She shrugged. "It's to be expected by someone in my position."

"Right." He said dryly. "Because people like me can't attain such positions and aren't required to stay behind for that sweet salary."

She dropped the keys unceremoniously into the plate on the counter, delivering a rather loud racket that caused Anthony to tighten back his ears and bare a few teeth. "Is that what you think about how I regard you? Like you're beneath me?"

Taking another sip, "Well, why not? You didn't really need me for my money, that's for sure. Just some warm body to hold onto your arm and make you look respectable as a lady of influence in Zootopia. What could a bigwig CEO want with a lowly cop, huh?"

Murana folded her arms tightly, staring at him. "What I needed was not your money, but your love. You had something that I couldn't quite place at the time and I fell for it. I fell for you. Had nothing to do with your standing or mine; your 'position' or mine. I don't stay because I need to look respectable. I stay because I believe in the commitment and vows I made to you."

"Oh yeah? The vows?" He scoffed, his thoughts clearly not on the present.

"Yeah. In fact, today I could have easily taken another mammal to bed if I so chose, but I chose to keep true to you and I rebuffed his advances." She blurted, feeling rather hurt at his callous attitude.

"You were looking for tail then today, huh?" He set his beer down and faced her a bit more directly. "Is that why you are home late?"

"What? No!" She flustered. "I'm just saying…"

"Sounds to me you went out purposefully looking." He reasserted a bit more forcefully.

"Ugh, you are drunk, Anthony. I am not having this ridiculous discussion right now. If you really don't want this marriage to work, just say so. Grow a pair, be a male and just tell me straight up if this relationship isn't working out for you." She glared back at him defiantly.

She had reached the end of her rope with this inane attitude of his. She had no idea what had gotten into Anthony today, but it was clear something was bothering him very much and he was unjustly taking it out on her. She understood that his job had been a bit more stressful of late, but he always seemed to keep his chipper demeanor at home whenever he doffed his uniform and slapped on a pair of sweatpants and tank-top. He never really let anything get to him, until today.

Taking the bait, he stood up suddenly, rattling the coffee table and nearly tipping the bottle perched on it. Ignoring the brief commotion he had caused, he marched up to her and looked down upon her. He was over a foot taller, but it did little to intimidate Murana. She didn't back down from his menace. She wrinkled her nose at the smell of booze on his breath, but she did not let that distract her from returning his ire.

"I don't feel respected for what I do in this marriage. For all the times I have covered for you with dinner, whenever you came home late with no time to cook. For all the times when I had to pick you up and take you to appointments because you refuse to get yourself a car and I have to pick you up in the squad car. Which, mind you, is against regulations, but I do it for you anyway." He rattled off, with clear intent for more.

"And I appreciate all that." She tapped a foot. "And I do respect you, Anthony. I appreciate all that you do for me."

"Then how do you show it?" He spread his arms wide, claws out in frustration. She looked at him in silence, unsure of how to answer. "You're very hard to live with, Murana. You are stubborn, unrelenting and can sometimes be a bit unsympathetic. I don't know all that happened to you when you were younger, because you never want to talk about it. It's like you don't even trust me enough to let me know what causes you nightmares during the night."

"That's a bit personal." She retorted.

He huffed, "Of course it is! Everything is too personal for you! Ever since we got married, I have revealed just about everything about me, but I barely know anything about you." He jabbed a finger at her. "I figured maybe you were just shy and that in time, you'd open up and I'd fall in love with you all over again. Now I know that you aren't shy, you just don't care about this marriage enough to bother telling me anything about yourself. Why you didn't even tell me you couldn't have kids until today and just let me think you wanted nothing more than scruffy adopts as cubs."

"You were going pretty good there, but now you're losing the high ground here, Mister." She warned. "I suggest you back down now. You have no idea what you're stepping into with me."

"No, you listen." He growled, causing her to stop short. "Just for once, I'd like to feel like the head of this family. I've always felt inferior compared to you, like how I am not the sole breadwinner here. You tend to make all the decisions for this family. I had to sell my small apartment and drop everything to come live here with you after marriage and I didn't complain once. Even if it is for only a few moments here and there, I'd like to feel like I can provide for you. To provide and help usher in a new cub into our family, but now I find out that I'll never be able to do even that with you!"

"Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. It is a very sensitive subject with me." Murana finally broke eye contact, looking away at the screen. "I'm just not ready to talk about it with anyone."

"Well, I'm not just anyone. I am your husband!" He rapped a fist on his chest. "Is your 'past' part of the reason why you keep that picture of yourself on your bed stand? Honey, if you can't put your faith in me, then who can you place your faith in?"

"I'm just not ready, Anthony." She turned her eyes back to him, trying to re-steel her resolve. "Please don't push this onto me right now. It's not a good time."

He snarled, his anger coming back. "Then when is it a good time? Next week? Month? Year? What this marriage needs is a little trust!"

"No, what this marriage needs is a bit more understanding!" She shot back, getting up on her tiptoes to get level with him.

"No, Murana!" He roared, spittle flying. "What this marriage needs…is one less husband. It's feeling a bit crowded right now!"

That stalled her rebuttal cold. She blinked at him as he swept past her, not even bothering to grab the keys to let himself back into the apartment. The walls shook at the slamming of the door, no doubt alarming some of the neighbors in the floors and rooms around her. She knew she would be receiving a call from her landlord the next morning over this fight.

Glancing over into the dining area, she spotted two plates arranged across from each other. One was already empty with nothing but crumbs. He had stayed up waiting for her to return earlier. She never showed. Who knew what was going on in his head while he was eating alone, expecting her to show up at any moment and appreciate the gesture of sincerity in his efforts of making up for earlier.

A movement out of the corner of her eye directed her attention to the glass panel door leading into the small suite that her friend Zoey occupied. She was sitting there, regarding her with an odd look. No telling how long she had been there listening to them argue. She held the gaze a moment longer before scampering off on all fours deeper into the wall and out of sight.

Murana collapsed onto the couch, the tears that were threatening her all afternoon finally overtook her. She wept bitterly over all she had lost today. She lost the support of her son, Steven. She lost the trust of her neighbor, Zoey. She lost the chance of loving a new kit, Max. She most likely lost the love of her husband, Anthony. She couldn't imagine this week getting any worse and it barely even started. She broke down completely and cried herself to sleep.

* * *

 _Zootopia – Central Districts – Tundra Town to Happy Town  
_ _Tuesday – 10:48 PM – Overcast with Frequent Electrical Currents / Light Rain_

She snorted, jolting herself awake as the buzzing in her suit pocket woke her up. She swore as she flipped over onto her side on the couch, her paw digging deep and grappling the phone out, swiping the screen to see who was calling her at this ungodly hour. She narrowed her eyes as she saw a familiar number, a smug, grinning face staring back at her with green irises. Not exactly the person she wanted to be talking to this late at night. She tapped the answer button and placed it to her ear.

"Mrs. Wolford? Is everything all right?" A surprisingly concerned voice reverberated through the speaker.

"Yes, Officer Wilde. Everything is fine." She responded flatly, wanting nothing more than to get back to sleep.

"Nick will do, ma'am." He reminded her. "Look, I'm all for buddies coming over unannounced for a good time watching the game or playing videos, but when they are passed out stone cold drunk on my bed, I kinda have a problem with that."

"What? Did you call so I could pick him up?" This was the last thing she needed right now.

There was a slight pause on the phone. Sensing the tone in her voice, he changed tack, "No, that won't be necessary. I'm just concerned for you. He was raving something fierce when he stumbled through my doorway. A lot of it…concerning you."

"Yeah, we got in a fight. Happens all the time in marriage." She rejoined swiftly.

"That's not the type of fight this sounded like." Nick began.

"I do not believe this is any of your business, Wilde. My family's affairs are our own." She cut him off sharply.

His voice changed, a bit of an undercurrent of indignation slithering through his words. "Mrs. Wolford, your husband is my friend and one of my partners on the force. What affects him, affects me. When we have difficulties in life, we have to learn to rely on our friends to help support us through the tough times. Officer Hopps taught me that. Anthony chose my doorstep to come to and I'll do everything I can to help him through this. Who do you have to rely on, Mrs. Wolford? None of us can do this life alone. Who do you have to open up to about this?"

The question hung there like an indictment. Without answering, Murana turned the phone off and let it sit there on the coffee table. She stared at it for a long time before getting up, leaving it there and padding over to her bedroom to get dressed for the evening. She had just slipped off her suit blouse when a small, crumpled piece of paper fell to the floor. She unfurled it, having completely forgotten she had stuffed it into her new suit back at the office during her impromptu wardrobe change.

It was that tip she had procured from Chris at ZNN regarding the rapist sheep living in Tundra Town. One of his common outings was a local pub just on the east side of the district and according to the scrawl on the paper, tonight was one of his scheduled visits to that establishment. If she didn't act now, she would miss the chance at him again until three days from now. She didn't have the time to go shadowing his movements waiting for an opening when she already had the knowledge right here in her paws as to his next destination.

Steeling her nerves, she fought back the urge to roll back into bed and lifted the mattress up off the box spring to reach her new suit given to her by Billy. She had made a brief stop at the homestead before heading to Mercy Hospital and lacked a better place to hide it on a moment's notice. She marveled at the looser feel of the material and purred at the feel of her hook gauntlets as she fastened them around her wrists.

Curious to test them out, she pressed one of her palm buttons and a hook flared out, zipping across the room before making a huge hole in the wall, spitting chunks of whitewall across the grass carpeting. "Shit!" She exclaimed as she pressed the button again and the hook retracted and folded in its fins back into her gauntlet. "Holy crap, that is fast." She shook her head, knowing she would have to caulk that damage on her own without the knowledge of the apartment complex.

Cringing at the smell, she took the last remaining can of skunk musk and sprayed it on her suit. Although she loved her son dearly, she would be glad of the day that she wouldn't have to use his scent anymore to mask her own. Maybe she'd ask Billy the next time she saw him to see if he could invent something that could mask her scent without the usage of other mammals and potentially implicate them in the process.

Murana opened the verandah sliding doors, breathing in the small sting of chlorine. The odor whipped through the wind generated by the electrical storm, which was now in full swing. Streaks of lightning danced across the sky at swift intervals, illuminating the buildings below in a cavalcade of colors. This was far worse than she had anticipated. As dangerous as it was, she had a mission tonight. She would take the lower buildings to traverse Zootopia. The higher ones were just too risky and she did not want to be burnt to a crisp by an errant bolt since skunk musk was highly flammable.

Leaping off the balcony like she usually did, she aimed for the lower of the complexes around her suite. She yelped loudly as she swung haphazardly through the air, unacquainted with the new speed and nuances of these hook wires. She smashed side first into a window, forming a small crack as she cried out. She began to fall as she hastily shot out her other gauntlet hook towards an opposing building. Securely hooked, she pressed the other button, curled up her first trial and swung over to the next.

"Sweet pile of chicken feathers!" She swore, swaying over to the next structure. This was far different than her previous setup. It would take a minute for her to get the hang of these new upgrades.

With some finagling, Murana eventually made it over to the eastern side of Tundra Town, albeit in a fashion that took far longer than she would have liked. The bulk of the storm was further to the west, resulting in far less lightning on this edge of the city. She skidded to a halt just above the Ivory Bun, a rather prominent pub that catered to winter-furred mammals with all sorts of liquor and bar foods.

Balancing over the edge of the curved rooftop, she surveyed the street below. It would probably be another hour or two before her mark would leave and blunder back home completely drunk. It would be a rather long stakeout, but if it meant one less vile individual in the world, she was willing to stick it out. Curling her tail around her, she sat down and prepared for a long sit.

Shaking the small flecks of snow drifting across this part of Zootopia, she sniffed the air and looked westward towards Happytown. The fur on the back of her neck was standing on end. She sensed that the storm was accumulating over that district. A hard pinging in the back of her mind galvanized her to her feet. The central nucleus of the clouds was over Tundra Town last night when Pale Moon Orphanage was struck. It was now over Tail Hollow! This was not some coincidental storm!

"I always suspected it to be you." A familiar voice echoed off from her left. "I just had to be sure before I confronted you."

"Confronted me?" She turned to the orange-hooded figure, wearing a contrasting set of fatigue pants. She picked up a whiff of his smell, the side of her lip rising in disgust. "It's you."

"Guess it isn't hard to figure out my scent, considering I don't have my own son's musk to cover it up." Chris retorted, pulling back his hoodie and revealing his brown ears. "It also wasn't hard to figure out that every time I gave Steven a 'tip,' it would somehow end up with you coming to call and the cops are left with a burnt body."

"So what? You going to turn me in? How did you even follow me in the first place?" She scoffed, disliking Chris even more now. She made a mental note to remind Steven later to not associate with this prick of a maned wolf.

"Actually no, I came here to talk you out of something and I did not follow you. In fact, that 'tip' I gave you to give to Steven was actually a red herring. It was actually meant for you to meet me here so we could talk face to face without masks. From one vigilante to another." He offered, raising a paw out for understanding.

Murana clucked her tongue, "Vigilante…is that what you think I am?"

"Well, aren't you?" His ears flicked in confusion as he tilted his head. "We both fight for justice and defeat the bad guys before they can harm anyone else, sometimes doing a few things outside the law just so that we can serve it."

"Bad guys? Justice? You sound just like a child. Things aren't as black and white in the real world." She admonished, crossing her arms. "These people are killers, vile and despicable. They do not need to be 'defeated' or jailed. They need to be put down for good."

"That isn't how heroes work!" He shouted, getting awkwardly angry. "We fight to protect the innocent and put the criminals behind bars. Tie them up and let the police handle the rest."

"Heroes?" She asked dubiously. "You're a greater fool than I took you for. The cops aren't going to hold these despicable mammals for long. There will come a time where some loop hole will be exploited or lack of substantial evidence will be proposed and they'll be loosed again on the populace, free to harm and molest innocent females and children again. There is no justice to be had here in Zootopia except the justice that we make for ourselves!"

"But is killing really the answer? Does burning them alive make you any better than they are?" He reasoned, taking another step towards her, hoping he could subdue her some other way. He realized that rationalizing it out with her wasn't exactly going to work.

"Who cares what that makes me?! What matters is that they no longer can harm anyone else ever again!" She spat.

"Yet you are harming them." Chris pointed out, taking another step closer.

"They gave up their rights to live the moment they hurt others." She concluded firmly. "I know what you're trying to do and it won't work. I have my own mission and you cannot stop me from it." She looked back down briefly at the street. "This sheep was not real was he?"

Chris shook his head, taking another step. "Nope, he's real. However, he did none of the things I said he did. That note was just to get you up here."

"Well now that you had your talk with me, you can move along now. I have to get back home and it would be unwise to follow me." She warned, her eyes flinging daggers.

"Knowing you'll just be out here again killing someone else and burning them to a crisp, I can't really just sit back and let it happen. I wouldn't be able to live with myself." He shifted a hind paw back and brought out a nunchuck, letting half of it dangle down the side of his leg. His sleeve rolled back from the motion, revealing the scratches on his arm. "I stopped you last night from getting a clean kill, and I'll stop you again tonight."

"Last night?" Her eyes grew wide, ears flattening as she realized where those scratches came from. "That was you busting up those cats and ruining my perfect shot?" A low growl rumbled deep in her throat. She didn't like it when others interfered into her affairs.

"Of course! I also knew about their deal going down that night and knew you'd be there too! I had to stop you from killing anyone else." He began spinning the nunchuck in a lazy circle.

"I knew I should have trusted my gut feeling about you the moment we met. Sly like a fox, one would say." She susurrated. Lowering a paw to her belt, she unclasped a pouch where her Kunai were kept. "You look like a fox and smell like one too. Why should I have expected anything less?"

Chris's snout twitched in irritation at the word. "What did you call me?"

"You heard me." She grinned, ready for the fight now. "Only a fox would be so conniving to come up with some lie to get me to come out here just to talk. What are you going to do next, hustle me for my money? Like every other fox in town?"

"They're not like that! I'm not a fox, I'm a maned wolf!" His calm breaking, memories of his past coming back to haunt him as this bully of a wolf was calling him names.

"Keep telling yourself that, kid." Murana chuckled, her paw dipping into the pouch. "The resemblance is uncanny. Did you dye your fur because you sympathized with them? Wanting to be like one? It's not like you have to try hard with the way you look." She could see his composure failing, it wouldn't take much to overtake him in a state of angst.

"Stop it right now! I'm warning you!" He barked, his teeth bared. The hackles on the back of his neck were raised, he was ready to pounce.

"Oh look, the poor, little fox is offended." She regarded him a moment. "Actually, I stand corrected. You're really not that little, you're more like a fox on stilts."

Chris howled in fury as he rushed forward, swinging his nunchuck forward with vicious velocity. This was the opening she needed from him to gain the upper hand. In a flash, she whipped out two Kunai and flung them through the air. The maned wolf yipped in surprise as each blade caught the folds of his arm sleeve, throwing him back against the nearby rooftop vent duct causing his nunchuck to sag from his entrapped paw. The metal pierced the aluminum siding, causing the hot air within to spew out into a plume of white, hot mist in the chill night.

Using his fleeting disorientation from the blast, she hurtled through the air, elbow forward to knock him out. He caught wind of her movement just in time to duck his head as she slammed into the duct inches from his ears, denting it deeply. His left arm still pinned, he thrust his right paw upwards in an uppercut. Reacting insanely fast, she leaned to the side and blocked his attack before placing a paw on each shoulder for leverage and kneeing him in the groin.

"Ugh…low blow…" The maned wolf gasped, sinking to his knees and dropping the nunchuk with a clatter.

"Do you yield?" She pressed, bearing down on him with claws out.

Looking to be in great pain, he gingerly rose his eyes to meet hers before uttering defiantly. "Never."

Murana's eyes widened with disbelief just as his leg swept her off her feet. She managed to throw her upper body backwards as her hind paws left the gravel top, giving her the momentum to catch her fall in a backwards somersault and vaulting off her paws back onto her feet. Taking the opportunity, he yanked his arm down, tearing the fabric of his sleeve and leaving two gaping holes where the Kunai has speared it to the duct.

"Aw man…that was my favorite hoodie!" Chris smacked the ground before rising up with his nunchuck in full swing.

Murana quickly brought up two more Kunai, their tips jamming upwards through the chain-link hoops connecting the two wooden ends of Chris's weapon. She had to rear her head back to avoid the flailing end as it swept past her snout, barely clipping her nose and stinging her cuts there. She jerked back hard, tugging the maned wolf forward and causing him to lurch on one hind paw. His inertia was beyond the point of recovery as his eyes bulged at the clothesline of her arm ramming into his chest, flipping him onto his back with a whine.

Hacking up his lungs at the loss of air from the impact, she descended upon him with a knee deep into his neck, repressing his ability to draw in precious air. She calmly looked down on him, "You're a young cub trying to play in adult business. You are simply not equipped to handle someone who has had decades more experience at this than you. You belong at ZNN, Chris, not out here. Do not follow me."

Straining his airway to open, paws frantically trying to remove her oppressive knee closing off his windpipe, he managed to croak, "I helped…stop those criminals last…night. We…can help each other!"

Sneering, she returned her attention back on the storm brewing over Happytown. Frequent lightning strikes were cascading down into the district. Too specific and obvious to be just coincidence. She needed to get there fast now to allay her suspicions. "You only beat those cats up because they were dumb grunts, completely untrained in the art of killing. Go home, little fox. Take your false confidence and do not follow. This is your last warning." She spoke without even looking back down at him.

"If you…won't stop killing, then...I will have to…stop you." He wheezed out, her leg digging deeper with each word to get him to shut up. He was on the verge of passing out, legs thrashing as he struggled for air.

"Very well. Then I have no choice." Murana serenely lowered her left wrist and began to coat his hoodie with a pungent oil.

"What…are you doing?" He gurgled.

"Making sure you don't follow me." She responded with chilling tranquility.

He began to flounder, his entire body trying to buck the moment he realized what she was going to do. She peacefully lowered her right paw and at the moment of releasing the hold on his neck, she lit him on fire. Without hesitation, she sprinted across the rooftop and leaped over the edge. She was already hooked onto her first building when she heard Chris wailing. Hysterically, he managed to get the hoodie off and flung it far away from him, dropping to the ground and rolling to get the rest of the flames off his person.

He was off in hot pursuit. Furious that his favorite and most sentimental piece of clothing was now ruined. He took a more circuitous route across the rooftops, unable to take a more direct route due to Murana's ability to just hook her way across. He almost despaired at being able to catch up until she took a rather curious detour through Savannah that led her straight to Happytown. Seeing an opening, he went for it and cut through several blocks to herd her at the entrance to that small district.

Pulling out another pair of nunchuks attached to the loops of his belt, he soared off one building just a few floors higher than the one he spotted Murana on. In mid-air, he chucked his weapon at her legs with stunning accuracy. It snapped around her ankles, causing her to cry out in shock as she tumbled forward onto her face.

She rolled over onto her back, scrunching up her legs so her knees were up to her chin just as Chris's paws hit the deck. While still on her back, she flipped her arms around so her palms were on the ground before exploding her legs out at Chris who was charging at her prone form. The impact of her hind paws on his chest catapulted him back across the rooftop, causing him to wobble backwards over the edge. With a small whimper, he teetered and fell over backwards.

Untangling herself from the nunchuk, she looked over into the street to see him desperately hanging onto a flagpole, his hind paws clawing for some pawhold on the draping flag. She smirked, "I hope you've learned your lesson. Now be a good fox and stay down."

Ignoring his protestations, she resumed her sole pursuit of reaching Tail Hollow Orphanage. Murana had just vaulted over the final cooling unit when she beheld something in the sky she thought she would never see again. The bottom of a huge, iron structure was peeking out through the clouds. Its sides flanked by gargantuan, purple ballast balloons, windows built into the siding of each. At the front of the aircraft was a dipping hunk of metal shaped like a vulture's beak and several propellers on the back end keeping the thing aloft. The symbol on the upright tail fin was that of a skull and crossbones.

It was from this structure that two massive cannons were protruding from the front of each balloon, aimed downward at Tail Hollow and blasting the roof off with concentrated bolts of pure lightning. She could hear the screaming of all the kids and the anguished cries of mammals as the smell of burning fur hit her nose.

As much as the sight of that iron vulture struck fear to her very core, she knew she needed to get to Max and get him out of there immediately. Swinging from each railing of the descending fire escape, she launched herself through the third story window, shattering it into a million pieces as she rolled in onto her hind paws. In an instant, she was bursting out of the room and down the halls.

She could see multitudes of cubs fleeing to and fro in abject terror. Bulky shapes were rounding them up, picking up two or even three at a time underneath each arm. Without warning, she launched a hook into the shoulder of the nearest canine, hearing his roar of pain as its fins flared out within his flesh. Heaving it back as she ran towards him, he flopped to the floor. She was immediately upon his back, driving a Kunai deep into the base of his skull as she twisted it savagely. His entire body went slack.

The dropped kids looked at her in fright, running away from her as if she was one of the others. Flouting the dead corpse beneath her, she tore down the hallway. Another canine emerged from the door nearby. She sprayed the slow burning oil onto his face in passing, wrapping an arm around his neck before flipping over and slamming him face first into the floor. There, she let loose a small blast of flame from her other wrist, letting him writhe in screaming agony as she continued on towards Max. She began to pant as she could feel the slight tearing of her stitches on her abdomen, but she couldn't give up now.

The biggest collection of screams was coming from the central foyer as it seemed the kids were being rounded up together and being transported by bunches in massive rope nets, being lifted into the sky to be enveloped in the cargo bay of the aircraft above. Each group of kids were batched up by type and the adult caretakers were cordoned off by themselves at the far side of the room. Murana was on each intruder in a heartbeat; twisting limbs, gouging out eyes, flipping them over the railing to the floor below and swiftly killing many.

"Stop, I say!" A lilting voice boomed out in the gloom, the flashes of lightning above doing little to illuminate his face. "Such grace! Such form! But you will go no further or our poor, dear Matron gets it."

The figure snatched the panther from the pile of sniveling adults at his feet and held a jagged scimitar to her neck. Murana was not daunted by the bluff and continued onward, tripping another lackey who dared get in her way. She could see Max huddled alongside other kits with his knees up to his chest, hands bound behind his back. He didn't even register her presence, his mind lost somewhere else.

"Such a shame." The figure clucked, his voice way too jovial for the nature of his work. "I do not like to resort to such measures, such violence. Killing is so unbecoming, but if I am forced to it then I shall!" With a scream from another caretaker looking on, he sliced the panther's throat from ear to ear. Her eyes rolled back in her head as she gurgled and crumbled to the floor, crimson staining the wooden floorboards. "Such a waste of a beautiful female. Ah, but such is life."

"Let them go or I will kill you." She said with seething malice. All muscles in her body taut and her heart racing.

"Hmm, that voice…" The figure mused before stepping out into the light to reveal himself.

He was a fox like any other, but garishly dressed in a navy blue captain's vest with gold buttons down each side of his breast. His wrist cuffs were of bright red along with the sash at his waist line holding up a pair of cyan pants. Murana was rooted to the spot at the sight of him, memories of dread and terror flooding her senses, but the fox did not notice or care.

"I can tell you mean business. I do too." The fox quickly hauled a giraffe calf up by the scruff of his long neck, legs kicking at him in the air as he was held aloft, braying and crying. Without ceremony, the intruder drove the scimitar through the kid's stomach as the legs dropped lifeless. Pulling the cold steel out, he flung the small body aside. "I don't need all of them alive, you see, just a few. So what is it going to be?"

He reached over and picked up Max by the neck, lifting him high into the air. The raccoon gave no resistance, his limbs and tail just hanging lifeless already. At the sight of him being the next to die, Murana's resolve broke. She fell to her knees as she stared on in helpless agony, whining as the wounds on her stomach began to seep again. The demons of her past were being made manifest before her very eyes and she broke into a cold pant, unable to handle the panic attack that was threatening her calm and causing her to go mad.

"Don…Karnage." She breathed.

The fox cocked his head to the side, lowering his scimitar from Max's abdomen. "Yes? It is I, the great pirate, Don Karnage! But how did you know who I am?"

He flung the compliant Max over his shoulder before advancing on the wolf, his scimitar held out before him. He picked up her scent, his nose crinkling at first from the skunk stench permeating around her, but then filtering out her true scent from within the mess of musk. He began to laugh heartily, a big, boisterous bellow that rose from his belly.

"Ha! What a glorious day it is today, men! Not only have we succeeded in two successful raids in the heart of this wretched city, but our long lost sister has returned to us!" He waved his scimitar around as if drumming up applause for this momentous occasion.

"No…" Was all Murana was able to utter as she felt like a little cub again in the face of this monstrous nightmare from the past.

"Ah-ah-ah, though…" Karnage snickered, as he pointed his weapon at her lower abdomen. "Last I recall, we did not leave on very good terms, did we? Oh no…! We each left a mark on the other." He inclined his head, flopping his left ear down as her eyes were drawn towards the healed flesh of what looked like bite marks that had ripped out portions of it.

Shaking his head in mirth, he signaled some men to come bind her. It was clear she was not going to be putting up any more of a fight. Readjusting Max on his shoulder, he knelt down until he was face to face with her. Taking her chin in his paw, he forced her to look directly into his tawny eyes.

"Welcome home, Pet." He cackled with glee.

* * *

 _I always have the most joy when writing Murana's vigilante scenes. I feel like the entire scene just flowed out of my fingers and didn't let up until it was finished. First, however, I needed to get through another spat of drama that had to set the scene for future events with Anthony. It was a difficult section to write, one where I used my own experiences with relationships and my own personal fights to fuel the flames of the tension and anger bubbling between Murana and Anthony. It was necessary to do this to shatter the last remaining thread Murana had to any sort of support system, to make her truly alone for what happens next. As for the second vigilante scene, I had promised a friend a fantastic altercation and I hoped I delivered on the rooftops of Zootopia. It was a fight that was long in coming and foretold over a year ago in Discord, but I was happy to finally get it out on the page. Finally, the ending scene where I introduced the primary villain of the story was a real treat. I had to do a lot of research and watching an old TV show to get him just right. Even then, I did not want a rehash of what his character was before. I wanted to establish very quickly he was going to be quite different while still maintaining who he was as a character, something I hope readers can appreciate and enjoy. Enjoy the cliffhanger!_


	8. Wednesday - Trailing the Flames - Morng

_Downtown – Mercy Hospital – Southern Savannah off Oasis Plaza  
_ _Wednesday – 7:18 AM – Sporadic Clouds / Misty_

"Grayz. Grayz! Wake up." A small voiced echoed through his brain.

"Please…call me Ralph." He muttered, shifting sluggishly in his sleep.

The wildebeest's eyes fluttered open, the harsh, glaring light causing them to sting from their brightness. A splitting headache slammed into his skull as he groaned from the sudden inhale of lingering stench. He lurched up out of bed, gagging as the memory of what had happened surged back into his mind. A soft, tiny paw was placed upon his chest, urging him to lie back onto the sterile hospital bed.

"Hey, big guy. Take it easy." A bunny was sitting beside his large form, her purple eyes regarding him warmly. "Yeah, the smell was pretty awful too when I awoke."

"Hnngh, Hopps?" He groaned. "What happened?"

"We both passed out. That's what happened." She stated matter-of-factly.

Ralph looked around his environs, blinking as he took stock of where he was. "How long have we been out?"

Judy glanced over at the atomic clock on the nightstand beside the bed, "Over 24 hours. We basically lost a day."

A grunt of disapproval emerged from his throat as he rose to get up again. "This is unacceptable. I need to get back to my family."

Judy placed her paw back onto his chest, gently, but firmly pressing him back. "Easy, Grayz. They aren't due to release us just yet. The doctor's given us a clean bill of health as soon as you were awake. There will be a perpetual aura of stink that we'll be experiencing for the remainder of the day, but he said that too will pass. Once the nurse gets back, we can take our final showers, get dressed and go home."

"Dressed?" He asked, confused. "What happened to our uniforms?"

Judy chuckled at his bafflement. "Officer Wilde came by and said he'd handle the cleaning of our uniforms."

"With a nose like his? That's brave of him." Grayz uttered with astonishment.

"That's my Nick." She said cheerfully. At a curious look from Grayz, she cleared her throat and continued, "Either way, he picked up some spare clothes from my home and your wife."

"My wife!" The memory of his need to get back home came back quite forcefully. "Did they ever come over yesterday to visit us while we were out?"

She shook her head. "Unfortunately, no. Only Wilde, Bogo and a few other colleagues came by from what I've heard. We were declared biohazards and civilians were not permitted to come within a building's distance of us."

"My son's probably worried so much." Ralph aggrieved.

"I never knew you had a son." She tilted her head, genuinely interested.

He nodded, "Only the one. I was actually visiting an orphanage the day of my first shift here to look for a playmate for him."

"Playmate? You aren't looking to have another calf?" She brought her other leg up from the side of the bed and sat cross-legged, facing him directly.

His shoulders sagged, his dark, grey eyes piercing hers. "We tried. Our son was very much a miracle. The doctors claimed he was not to be born at all, yet we had him. My wife had to be placed into intensive care just after the birth and then steril…I'm sorry." He choked up. "I usually don't speak of personal matters to many others."

Judy's face softened. "It's okay, Grayz. I wasn't trying to pry.

Ralph shook his head to allay her fears, "No, you're fine. I just didn't expect to unload that much onto you. I just feel really homesick right now."

She patted his leg a few times. "I know the feeling. You at least have the benefit of having your family living here in Zootopia with you. Mine are all the way out in Bunnyburrow. Not that I mind much. I do like the freedom I get here, and with Nick Wilde around, I don't really have to be worried about being alone."

"You two seem very close." He smiled. "I don't have many friends here just yet, being reassigned here and all. I barely got to know anyone at the precinct before I was out on the beat for my first shift. Hopefully, everyone doesn't think less of me being taken down on my first night on the job. It is kind of embarrassing."

She shared his mirth, "I wouldn't worry about it. I've had to work hard to get the respect I get around here and even I got taken down just the same as you. I don't think you have anything to worry about. Not many people got as close as we did to capturing the Dark Flame Wolf."

The fur on the back of his mane bristled with unease. "Come close? You mean she hasn't been captured yet?"

Judy's face fell, "You didn't know? It's been over a decade and no one has caught this wolf."

"No one?" His jaw dropped, aghast. "But we almost had her last night! She was right between our hooves!" He brought his up for emphasis, angry now.

Ears drooping, she agreed, "I know. In fact, this was the first night I had seen her personally. I really felt I could take her on. Just when I thought we had the upper hand, she got the drop on us."

"Surely someone has investigated this and tracked the evidence!" He protested; feeling a need to rant. "You said she's been making these sorts of killings for over a decade? There must be some sort of pattern to her targets. Some evidence left behind at each crime scene. Maybe Officer Wilde or other scent-savvy troopers can track her scent?"

She glumly shook her head, "The killings seem to be as random as they are brutal. Not much is left behind to be of much use and she masks her scent behind a façade of skunk musk. The only thing we've been able to determine is that she is a female wolf."

Ralph fell back onto the bed in frustration, "So everyone is just going to give up on tracking her down? Hasn't anyone decided to isolate the skunk musk and figure out who it is from?"

Judy shrugged, "I hear you. I don't like this criminal any better than you do. I'd stop her myself if I had a lead on her whereabouts, and maybe you can see if you can find a mammal willing enough to smell skunk intimately to track down the scent she uses."

The gnu crossed his arms gruffly, "I really can't believe that Chief Bogo would just give up on this. After all she has done, you'd think she would be priority number one for the entire ZPD!"

"She is, if you look at the community bulletin board." She shifted uncomfortably on the bed. "I read every posting on that board my first day in the bullpen. Her case is buried under a bunch of other more immediate cases, but she's there. It just seems she's gone the way of ghost stories or the Boogey Cat. Chief Bogo just doesn't have the resources, time or money to send many out on the hunt for someone that isn't actively making headline news."

"Headline news?" He tapped a hoof finger on his arm. "What do you mean? She's burning people alive. How is this not making headline news?"

Judy looked away, holding an arm with a paw, not wanting to say what was to come. She knew it would make him more upset. "Because it seems…she actually has a following."

"What? There are more mammals out there killing?!" He roared.

"No!" Her ears shot up, a bit shocked at how violently he reacted. "Nothing like that! Rather, that she has the support of people because of who was killed."

"I don't understand." Ralph began.

Just then, the nurse rapped on the door softly. Both of them turned to see a caribou in polka-dotted scrubs, holding up a clipboard of paperwork for them to sign. "I hope I'm not intruding." She beamed. "I'm Grisele and I'm here to help file your discharge papers." She strode into the room and handed them each a pen and a sheet. "Please read over these for accuracy and sign at the bottom and you'll be free to go."

They each signed hastily before returning the papers back to the caribou. "Thank you." Judy nodded, giving her a big smile.

"No problem, ma'am." She bowed at the two of them. "Feel free to use the showers and collect your belongings and leave when you are ready." With another look, she headed out into the hallway and out of sight.

"Well, that's our cue." Judy clapped her paws and bounded off the bed.

"Will I see you at the station?" Ralph inquired, turning his lower half to dangle his legs off the side.

She cocked an eyebrow at him, "No. I'll be at home resting today. Chief Bogo has given us the day off to recuperate from this. He'll want us in his office first thing tomorrow for a full debrief however."

Ralph grunted, not pleased. "That's unusual."

"Not really." Judy chimed in, now more intent on gathering her stack of neatly pressed clothes and picking them up under one arm. "The Chief may act surly and gruff all the time, but inside I know he's a big softie. It's things like this that give him away." She gave him a bright look before giving a wave, "There is a taxi card on the stand over there. It's already prepaid by the ZPD. Just give them a call when you're ready to head home. See you tomorrow, Grayz."

"See you." He waved back, not feeling as cheerful.

How could she be so nonchalant about all of this? Did they both not witness a murder being committed before their very eyes? Did they both not get assaulted by a villain in a red suit? It seemed surreal that he was expected to just continue his day as if nothing was wrong. With the enduring scent of musk hovering in his nostrils, he headed off to the showers to give himself a quick rinse down before heading home. His mind was a maelstrom of thoughts and emotions.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – Grand Pangolin Arms – Economy Family Floor – Room 412  
_ _Wednesday – 8:51 AM – Sporadic Clouds / Slightly Windy_

Grayz looked up from the frame of the doorway as he struggled to get out of the rather small cab that had come to pick him up from the hospital. The clouds had cleared a bit since the past few days and the sun was peeking through the gloom, shining shafts of light onto the tall, gleaming spires below. He had directed the driver to escort him to the Grand Pangolin Arms, a rather economy-priced apartment complex that wasn't exactly the best, but served the purpose of his paycheck until he could promote into a better paying position in the ZPD.

"Thank you kindly." He handed the driver a fold of bills as tip before shutting the door and clopping into the front entrance of the building.

The aged pangolin looked up from her tabloid magazine, regarding him through her ridiculous spectacles, before dismissing his presence to continue reading about the latest celebrity gossip. Pressing the fourth floor button on the elevator, the wildebeest leaned uncomfortably up against the metal bar around the interior of the carriage, his eyes on the ever increasing floor number.

The Grand Pangolin Arms was not really meant for luxury, but for economy. Most floors were for primarily single mammals, but the fourth and fifth levels were regarded as the family floors where there were bigger rooms to accommodate such tenants. He paced down the grimy, wallpapered hallways as the elevator doors opened; their patterns of palm trees faded and torn from neglect. Some loud banging and yelling could be heard elsewhere on another floor as he stopped in front of his own apartment: Room 412.

Taking a small sniff of his armpits and breathing a heavy sigh, he turned the keys in the knob and opened the door. It wasn't much to look at: the main room consisted of a small kitchenette off in the corner with nothing but a sink and microwave, a small table with three wooden chairs and a TV on a dresser in the opposite corner. Only one door led off the main room which led to the bedroom that he shared with his wife and son and a small one-toilet bathroom branching off from that. The communal showers were down the hall. It wasn't much, but it was home.

His wife looked up from washing a stubbornly dirty plate in the sink and instantly melted with relief. "Ralph! You're alive!"

She dropped the plate with a clatter and rushed into his arms, her hooves gripping his back tight as they sank into each other's embrace. He petted her head, sifting through her tawny mane, reassuring her, "Of course, my love. You'd think some silly stink bomb would put me out to pasture?"

She was a head shorter than him, but no less bulky of a wildebeest. She had on a dandelion sundress that was covered over in front by a dirty cleaning apron, but Grayz did not care one bit. They had been together through a lot of hard times and this situation was like any other they've experienced. Together, he knew they could make it through.

"Papa?" A small voice came from the bedroom as a youthful calf pounded out into the main living space on crutches that seemed too big for his frame.

Ralph's expression warmed as he beheld his son. His legs were shriveled husks that ended just above the knees. He was unfortunately born with the defect and as a result had to be cared for most of his life. He didn't have many friends at home in Bunnyburrow and absolutely none here in Zootopia, and it broke his heart that he remained here all day with his mother with nobody else to talk to. The main reason Ralph even took this transfer was to get medical help for his son to improve his standard of living, a possibility that only existed in Zootopia.

"Rodney, my boy!" He extended his other hoof as he walked his wife over to both pick the calf up in their arms and enjoy a family hug.

At length, he set Rodney down and situated him back onto his crutches before sitting in a seat at the table, looking rather exhausted. His wife set down before him a small plate of greens for his breakfast as she sat opposite him. He looked at her appreciatively, "Thank you, Stella. I'm quite famished."

Her brow furrowed as she put a hoof on his leg, giving it a squeeze. "Didn't they feed you in the hospital?"

He shook his head as he spoke in-between bites, "No. I was completely comatose the moment I got knocked out by that criminal's stink bomb."

"I heard. They wouldn't even let us come see you. I was so worried!" Stella exhaled, a great burden being released from her chest now that her husband was home.

Grayz rose a hoof up to allay her fears, "I wouldn't have wanted you and Rodney to come in the condition I was in. I must have smelled something awful and it would have put you in a position to pass out. You know how you are with your asthma."

She nodded dolefully. Rodney wasn't the only reason they had come to Zootopia. So many promises of medical treatments surrounded this city and they couldn't chance waiting any longer in moving here. Her condition was getting worse. As if on cue, she began coughing violently and had to reach for a handkerchief to cover her muzzle as she hacked it out. The only thing worrying Ralph was how expensive it was to live here. Would he be promoted in time to get the money needed to pay for these treatments?

After her spasm has passed, she set the scarf down, hiding the dark stain on the other side from her husband. "So did they manage to catch the one that did this to you?" She probed hopefully.

Grayz finished his final bite of the delicious spring mix, leaning back into his chair and shaking his head. "Sadly, no. It seemed the moment Officer Hopps and I were gassed, all pursuit of this criminal halted. Nobody seems interested in going after her."

Stella looked stunned, "They aren't even following any leads?" After another shake of his head, "This would have never happened in Bunnyburrow."

"Well, you'd be right now, this wouldn't have happened there." He leaned forward onto the table, placing his snout in his hooves. "You have to remember though, it is a smaller community out there, very close-knit. Zootopia is a far bigger place and has far less cops than is ground to cover. Not many people could hide for long in Bunnyburrow, but plenty can sneak away here in the big city."

"It just doesn't seem right." She said, looking upset as she took his empty plate to go wash in the sink with the others.

Rodney, who had been quietly listening to the entire conversation, piped up. "You weren't able to catch the bad guys?"

Ralph peeked over the side of one hoof at his son. "Well actually, a lot of bad guys were caught, just not the one that got me." He shifted his attention to his wife. "Apparently, the rest of the gang wrangled up a huge drug deal going down that night. I was left with Hopps and Wilde to chase down some crazy, masked wolf."

"Hopps and Wilde…" Stella ruminated. "Isn't that that fox and bunny duo at your work? They seemed very nice when I met them the other day."

"I like them!" Rodney chippered, a beaming grin on his face. "Judy gave me a carrot to munch on and talked with me!" He seemed lost in reminiscence over that nice rabbit who chose to spend her time with him when they came to visit the station.

"Yeah, being a greenhorn to Zootopia, the Chief thought it best I tag along with them my first night. I technically wasn't supposed to be out there until today, but you know me, I was eager. Thankfully, another colleague, Anthony, decided to give me his shift last Monday." He explained, giving his son's small mane a ruffle.

"That explains that." She confirmed to herself as she finished drying the plate and setting it in the rack on the counter. She stifled another cough before drying her hooves on the apron. "So, will you be back out there today? With that wolf character still on the loose?"

"No. The Chief said Hopps and I were to take the day off and recuperate." He answered.

A wave of relief washed over her face, "Oh, thank goodness. I would have had another anxiety attack again if you had to go right back out there. I'm starting to feel like coming here wasn't such a good idea. It is too dangerous here in Zootopia."

"Oh, honey, no…" He soothed, getting up from the chair, Rodney's eyes tracking him as he moved to hold her tight. "You and I both knew this was a necessary decision. For Rodney."

"For Rodney." She repeated softly, holding him tight again.

Her nostrils began twitching as she caught a whiff of his fur. Noticing her reaction, he separated, "Yeah, I still don't think I'm fully clean. We got any cans of tomato juice? I'll take one with me to the showers and wash one more time."

"We have one left in the cupboard." Stella motioned at the cabinet doors beneath the sink. "I'll have to buy more later today."

"Thank you, love." He grabbed the can and gave her a peck on the cheek before waving to his boy. "See you in a few, squirt."

Slapping a fresh towel from the bedroom over his shoulder, Ralph exited their apartment and headed to the showers. He neatly set aside his belongings and prepped the showerhead. As the water flowed through his fur, across his rippling pecs and six-pack, he turned the events of that night and this morning over in his head. Something just wasn't adding up.

Nick Wilde knew who the Dark Flame Wolf was the moment he laid eyes on her. Judy Hopps knew who she was and even knew the decade-long investigation surrounding this mysterious figure. Two relatively new cops to the precinct knew more about this wolf than he did the moment he stepped foot out onto the streets that night. He was woefully underprepared, and now both cops just graduating from rookie status were going to just ignore this individual and act like Monday never happened.

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. What justice is being served here when a vigilante killer is on the loose in Zootopia and has been for over ten years? He smacked a hooved fist into the tiled, shower wall. He knew the moment he stepped foot in that station tomorrow, he would be tasked to tackle some other case. He would be drawn away, be made busy with other things, and this would get swept under the rug like it had so many times before.

His wife was terrified for his life and he hadn't even been on the beat for a single day here in Zootopia. They came here to get better medical care for both her and their son, not to turn tail at the first sign of trouble. If any progress was going to be made on this case of the burning wolf, it would have to be today. He would need to be the one to do it.

With firm resolve, he quickly finished up his rinse, almost forgetting to apply the tomato juice. Fully dried and fluffy, he paced down the hallway back to their apartment. It wasn't until he began putting on his brown jacket over his t-shirt and strapping on his jeans that Stella took notice of what he was doing.

"Ralph? Where are you going? You just got home! Aren't you going to stay for the day and hang out with your son?" It was a tactic she used often and as heartfelt the sentiment that was behind it, he hated it when she used Rodney against him.

Exasperated, he turned to her, "Stella, please understand. This is something I have to do, ok? No one else is going to do this but me."

"Can't you just wait until tomorrow and do it then?" She pleaded. Rodney's eyes shifting back and forth between them as they argued.

He vehemently shook his head, "No. I'll just be reassigned somewhere else. This day off is just the opportunity I need to track this wolf down. Did you want to feel safe here? Wouldn't putting her behind bars accomplish that?"

"Y-yes…" She admitted haltingly. After a moment, she added, "Just…just promise me you won't go after her yourself, ok?"

Grayz gave her a swift hug and kiss on the head before parting, "I don't expect to leave the station much at all today, alright?" After another bow of her head, he went over to squeeze Rodney's shoulder before opening the door to leave. "You be good today, squirt. Take care of your mother, you hear?"

"Sure thing, dad!" Rodney rejoined, putting on a brave face.

Secure that all was okay, he shut the door, leaving behind a deflated Stella and a concerned son, curious as to what was actually going on with his parents.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – Zootopia Police Department – Off Freedom Circle Across from City Hall  
_ _Wednesday – 10:20 AM – Scattered Clouds / Light Winds_

Ralph felt awful for leaving his family so suddenly like that, but his conscience couldn't rest until he did everything he was capable of doing to stop this wolf who had hospitalized him. Lacking money to get another taxi, he walked the distance from his apartment to the station. It was a great day anyhow. The clouds had actually dispersed for the most part and he reveled in the rays of sun beaming down from above.

It was a short stroll through downtown until the streets opened out into Freedom Circle, the central hub of the Savannah District. Lining the exterior of the circle were major landmarks such as the Museum of History, City Hall and of course, the ZPD. The oasis lake in the center, flanked by a grove of palms, was a beautiful sight and a testament to the majesty of this great city. It was a shame, he thought, that it had an undercurrent of filth just beneath its perfect surface.

The gleaming, bronze spires protruding from the grassy rooftop of the ZPD framed the impressive structure as Ralph filtered through the morning traffic and into its front façade. The triple-decker tiered foyer was striking to behold and impressed him the first time he stepped foot into his new job. Several floors above had balcony railings overlooking the atrium below, the entire structure centered on the welcoming counter, manned primarily by a rotund cheetah of a particular donut fascination.

"Good morning, Officer Clawhauser!" Ralph boomed as he stepped up, placing an arm on the marble top, trying to act casual.

The cheetah didn't seem to have noticed him until being addressed directly. Fumbling with a cell phone, some loud pop music playing loudly from it, he shoved the device in a cubby hole underneath his desk and flashed a big smile at the gnu. "Morning! What a fantastic day it is today." He looked confused as he studied Ralph's face. "Have we met before? You look really familiar to me."

Ralph sighed, putting a hoof to his temple. Nick had warned him of the attention span of this cheetah. "Officer Grayz. You met me just this past Monday."

Throwing his paws up in supplication, "Right, right, right, right, right! I knew that! Was just testing you." A loud cough. "So how can I help you today, Officer Grayz?"

Tapping the counter top a few times, "Can you tell me if my paperwork went through today? For my system access clearance?"

After a few blinks, realization dawned on Clawhauser's face as he scrambled through a haphazard mess of papers and folders. "Of course. I remember seeing it somewhere in here this morning." Ralph raised an eyebrow at this. At length, with a satisfied purr of accomplishment, Clawhauser pulled out a semi-crumpled piece of paper. "Yes, it says it was approved right here as of 0600."

"Great!" Ralph beamed as he opened up the top donut box to see a variety of sprinkles, icing and sugared fat. Not really relishing the idea of eating one, but still feeling extremely hungry, he pointing to a glazed plain. "Mind if I take one?"

"Of course," the cat waved a paw off in his direction, "Some tell me they make me fat. I could stand to lose a few pounds." He exhaled morosely, looking off in the distance.

"You? Naw…" The gnu sheepishly comforted. "You appear to be in the prime of your life." He finished, taking a bite of his freshly procured pastry.

"It's okay. You don't have to lie to make me feel better. I know how people look at me." He glanced askance at the wildebeest.

Ralph winced. He did not want to get entangled in a story that would take the better part of the morning when he had so much to do. "Well, I think you are fine just the way you are." He patted the cheetah's shoulders a few times, giving him a consoling smile.

"Thanks, buddy." Clawhauser gave a furtive smirk, but then turned back to his station, wondering if he should go after his phone again or another donut to make him feel better.

With a final nod, Ralph finished up his own donut and headed over to the greenhorn cube farm. It wasn't glamorous and it was definitely where they placed the newbie cops who joined the precinct. He didn't mind though. He knew his place in the grand ladder hierarchy here. He would have to prove himself to his superiors that he could get a job done. If he could at least make some headway on this Dark Flame Wolf case, then that could go a long way for a better position within the force.

It was already during the busiest part of the morning. The early morning bullpen brief had finished and people were actively working on their cases, setting up plans for the remainder of the day on how best to go about completing them. Technically his day off, he could arrange his own personal outline of tasks with a bit more freedom. Slipping into an unmarked and empty cubicle, he pulled out the rolling chair and sat down before the computer.

Inwardly celebrating that his new username and password got him past the initial login screen, he was in the police system and able to do some research. He double-clicked on the icon symbolizing the database, bringing up a non-intuitive search and results display screen. This seemed like ancient programming. Even his own unit back in Bunnyburrow had a more advanced search and tracking tool than this.

Disregarding the dated tool he was using, Ralph put in the plain text words of Dark Flame Wolf into the system and hit enter. Hundreds of hits came back, almost a dizzying array of them. Leaning back in his chair, he felt daunted by the sheer number of cases that involved this individual. He marveled that after all this time, they still had not caught this criminal. With renewed determination, he resolved that she would be caught soon.

First things first, he needed to know how she operated. He opened up a case at random and read through the report. A rhino was burned alive in front of a flower shop. Had no family in the city and worked as a tax consultant at a prestigious firm. Pulling up another file: This time it was an anteater, also burned alive. Had a wife and two kids. Worked for a car manufacturing plant. Ralph puzzled over these two separate cases. These two victims couldn't be further apart in terms of relating factors.

It was clear that she liked to burn her victims, letting the flames finish the job, but how was she accomplishing this? Reading through a few more files, multiple lab results came back positive for a toxin that was known to induce paralysis in their subjects. So she immobilized them first before delivering the coup de grâce. This would explain why there were no pawprints on scene, she never touched her targets if she could help it.

What mystified the gnu was the sheer variety of victims. There was no distinction between prey or predator, small or large, male or female, criminal scum or family man. Every one of them died the same way. So trying to link up a common thread between the targets by way of life or what they did for a living wasn't going to produce anything worthwhile. In fact, some of those burned didn't even have a single spot on their record. They appeared to be completely innocent.

He brayed, frustrated, slouching back in the chair with his arms crossed. It had been over an hour and he was still no closer to figuring out a direct lead on how best to track down this masked killer. Pawprints, none. Cause of death articles available, none. Witness testimonies, none. Everywhere he turned, there were dead ends. He was so close to catching her Monday night and she slipped right through their hooves.

Ralph's eyes shot open as he thought about it. They were extremely close to capturing her on Monday! Perhaps a report had already been put into the system of that incident? It was worth a shot. He researched the name and scrolled to the most recent entry. It appeared to be a draft and uploaded as of 1845 the previous evening. It didn't matter, a report in any form of that night might prove useful here.

It was penned by Officer Wilde. The prose and formatting were atrocious, but it was still readable. What was of special interest to him was the fact that the ocelot was named Javier Sanchez and he was taken in critical condition to Mercy Hospital. That meant he might actually have a witness and someone to question once he recovered. More things of note was that several items from the criminal were tagged, bagged and were being analyzed in the laboratory now!

Excited, he picked up the desk phone and began dialing the numbers that would connect him to the evidence lab technician. After an obnoxious amount of ringing, a click was heard as the voice on the other end began to drone, "This…is…Raina. How…may…I…help…you?"

Ralph groaned as he recognized the unmistakable talking gait of a sloth. Of course they would have someone like that working the evidence storage and lab. You would need someone detail-oriented who wouldn't rush things. Still, that would make this current request that much more aggravating.

Putting on his most cheerful tone, "Raina! This is Officer Grayz. I am new to Precinct 1, but I do have clearance to the system and database. I know it isn't my case, but can I make a request to have a look at the evidence collected from this past Monday involving the Javier Sanchez murder attempt?"

"Of…course…Let…me…e…mail…you…the…form…to…fill…out…Just…one…moment…please." She chirped happily, feeling needed for once.

"Thank you so much!" He said, swiftly hanging up the phone before Raina could say anything further and delaying this investigation more.

He nearly leaped out of his skin as he was waiting for the email when a brazen, yet sultry voice spoke behind him. "Don't get too wrapped up in this work on your day off or the Chief might have a mind to not give you anymore!"

Ralph swiveled his chair around to see a short pig dressed in her blues leaning on his cubicle with an arm. She was round and voluptuous as only a mother pig could be with those hips after childbirth. She was regarding him with amused interest. "I apologize, but have we met?" He asked, confused.

She shot out a hoof for him to shake with a grin, "The name is Officer Swinton. Pleasure to meet you. What brings the newbie in today when he was given the day off to recoup?"

The gnu stopped a moment before answering. It wasn't like what he was doing was anything illegal or against the rules. However, it was rather unusual that he would be investigating a case that wasn't his without proper paperwork authorization, and that might land him in some hot water with the Chief when he shouldn't even be here at all. Against his better judgment, he knew his conscience wouldn't rest until he had made some headway today on the case, so he had to come up with something that would assuage Swinton.

He motioned back to his monitor, "I'm just waiting on an e-mail from Raina to see when I can recover something of mine from the crime scene I was involved in."

"Oh, that?" She tittered, taking pity on the new recruit. "If your personal property got mired in that mess, it'll be ages before it is cleared to be released back to you and not just because Raina is a sloth!" More laughter.

Ralph lowered his ears in irritation, "Are you saying she can't be fast?"

She wiped a tear from her eye, "No, no, no. What I'm saying is that you'll have to wait until the full investigation is complete and all items are verified and filed in the report before they'll start going through each piece of evidence and assigning it back to their proper owners, if they have any and it isn't necessary for the resolution of the case. If you're expecting an email regarding that, you might as well check back next month!"

"Hmmm, that isn't how we did things back at Bunnyburrow." He grumbled.

"Well, you're not in Bunnyburrow, hun." She gave him a wink. "We do things differently here in the big city."

"Yes, so I've gathered." He was still not happy with how much things were different, and sometimes not for the better.

"You should take advantage of this rare opportunity Chief Bogo has extended to you and head on home. Be with your wife and kid. They need you more right now." She suggested softly.

"How would you know that?" Ralph was a bit unnerved. News about family and personal life seemed to travel fast around the precinct. Were people here just that close or were they just nosy? At least in Bunnyburrow, there was a protocol of privacy that was followed, despite it being a close-knit community.

"I'm a mother." Swinton stated matter-of-factly. "And another parent can spot their own. Go home, Grayz. You need the day off." She reached out and gave his hoof a small squeeze before waving and sauntering down the row of cubicles.

Ralph knew that she was probably right. Even just getting the paperwork approval to access items of interest from that night would be mired in bureaucracy. He glanced over at the screen again and saw his sparse inbox still empty of new e-mails. It would probably take Raina another hour or two to even get it ready for him, let alone getting it ready to send it to him to fill out. With another sigh, he signed out of his workstation and got out of the chair, pushing it in as he did so.

He knew he didn't have much to go off of here. He knew it wasn't his place to go off to Mercy Hospital and see if he could question Javier on his connections with the Dark Flame Wolf. This was probably one big fool's errand, but if there was a single chance he could make a name for himself on the force in Zootopia, he had to take it. He needed to do this for his family. Something about this case screamed that he needed to be the one to solve it.

Flipping back on his brown jacket that he had put on the back of his chair, Ralph surveyed the cubicle before heading out. Resolving himself to his course of action, he headed out to the foyer and studied the city map mural on the back wall behind the central tower where Clawhauser sat. The hospital wasn't that far away, so he could walk there with minimal effort.

With a nod to a few colleagues he hadn't the faintest clue what their names were, Ralph exited out the doors and into the midday sun.

* * *

 _This was a very refreshing chapter to write. I knew that this would be quite the shocking swerve for most readers, eager and curious to find out what happens to Murana next after being captured by Don Karnage, our surprise guest villain. However, I knew that her story would be filled in much later in subsequent chapters and days, so there was no need to detail each and every thing of her experience now. This was the time to flesh out other original characters and to see how they interact and are involved within the world of Zootopia and its people. Based on how things turned out and who was with Judy Hopps at the time of the initial encounter with the Dark Flame Wolf, it seemed most fitting to follow Ralph Grayz, the greenhorn cop from Bunnyburrow, for the duration of day 3. We get to see the world of Zootopia through his lenses and his internal beliefs and values. We take a look at the overall system from a different perspective than say maybe Judy or Nick. With Ralph leading the charge as the protagonist for this specific day, it was finally a good way to dive deep into the history behind Dark Flame Wolf and really dig into the impact she has made within Zootopia to those who do not know her intimately. I also felt it a fun change of pace to have someone tracking her down, following the bread crumbs and slowly piecing together the puzzle that surrounds her while at the same time, constantly drizzling out bits and pieces of pertinent information that the reader will need to know for future events. Hopefully, people can respect this bold decision to follow another character for a time. We'll get back to Murana soon, I promise!_


	9. Wednesday - Trailing the Flames - Aftrn

_Downtown – Mercy Hospital – Southern Savannah off Oasis Plaza  
_ _Wednesday – 12:09 PM – Sunny/Clear Skies_

Ralph hated this place already. He had been here twice, once earlier this morning and before that with Stella and Rodney. It was a dismal visit, having to fill out paperwork and insurance forms, fully knowing that their current insurance wouldn't cover even half of the proposed costs of their visits. He was already hoping that his new work-offered insurance with the ZPD would be enough for them to manage, but that wouldn't take effect until the beginning of next month. That was several weeks away and they needed the help now.

The sterile and medicinal scent of the hospital stung his nose as he entered the building, feeling a strong sense of déjà vu. As many mammals that flowed through its entrance, this was not a happy place to be. However, Ralph did have hopes that this place held the key to helping his wife and son. Her asthma was getting worse by the week now and it would be glorious to see his son actually walking on his own two legs for the first time.

Recognizing the caribou nurse who had released them this morning, he strolled up to the nurse's station with a brimming smile. "Good afternoon. It is good to see you again." He paused, unsure if that was truly meant or just common pleasantries. "I was hoping you could do a favor for me?"

The nurse looked up somewhat irritably, clearly busy with a bunch of data entry. Putting on her best face, she greeted him, "Afternoon, sir. Can I help you?"

She clearly didn't remember him, but that was fine. He shouldn't expect a nurse, who sees hundreds of patients a day, to remember someone she briefly met just this morning to release him from the hospital. To confirm his authority, he flashed his badge to her before stuffing it back in his pocket, "Ma'am, I'm with the ZPD and I would like to talk with a suspect. One Javier Sanchez. Would you please be so kind as to tell me which room he is in?"

Her expression slumped, "Oh, I'm so sorry. His room is under cordon right now."

The hair on the back of his mane stood up, "What do you mean?"

She cocked her head slightly at him, "You mean you didn't know? He died yesterday afternoon. Cause of death is still unknown, but it is pointing to asphyxiation."

This certainly was no coincidence, he knew that for sure. If Javier survived his own burning, he suspected the Dark Flame Wolf would not be the type to just let him off the hook. "I was just assigned to the case this morning, so I was not fully aware of all the details just yet." He lied.

Sighing, she typed a few things into the computer before bringing up the entry she wanted, "He is in room 4005 on the 14th floor. The elevators are just down the hall that way after the water fountains." She pointed off to her left vaguely, clearly wanting nothing more than to get back to the mountain of paperwork she had to do that day.

"Thank you very much, Ms…um…" He began.

"Grisele." She smiled, for the first time.

"Grisele, thank you." He nodded before heading down the hall.

Riding up to the given floor, he stepped out and immediately noticed several strips of police tape strewn across the room of interest. There were two elephants hunched because of the low ceiling, having a heated debate over something. He didn't quite remember the bull's name, but the female was Francine Pennington. They might even be married, he wasn't quite sure.

"What do you want, rookie?" The male grumped, swinging his trunk at him.

"Honey, stop. That's rude." Francine whapped his arm with her trunk. She turned to face Ralph more directly. "Hey there, sorry about my partner, Bob. He can be a bit demanding at times." She ignored his glare completely. "So, what can I help you with today, Officer Grayz?"

His eyebrow rose at her amazing ability to remember his name as well as his face after not even a week in the city. "I was actually hoping I could get into Sanchez's room and do some investigating to figure out cause of death." He indicated the open door behind the two elephants.

Huffing and putting his forefeet on his hips, Bob grumbled, "Seems like a pretty cut and dry case to me. The equipment malfunctioned and Sanchez died of asphyxiation from collapsed lung. The insurance companies are trying to figure out who is responsible at this point. Nothing much for us to do here, but document the incident."

Francine flapped her ears, clearly done with Bob's attitude. "So why are you curious about this? We just finished up gathering evidence for the report that I," She shot a scowl over at Bob, "will be filing later tonight."

"I'm sure you are aware that both Javier Sanchez and myself were attacked Monday night by the Dark Flame Wolf. He was her primary target and she did not complete her kill." Ralph explained matter-of-factly.

"So this is a personal vendetta, is it? You want to take on the Dark Flame Wolf all on your own?" Bob swished his trunk with agitation, just about finished with this entire conversation.

"No, that isn't it at all." The gnu stammered, a bit taken aback at the vitriol that was spewing from his colleague's mouth. Were all big city cops this ornery?

"What is it then?" Francine asked, trying to pacify the conversation.

"I was there when I went to arrest that wolf, just as she was about to commit murder. She assaulted me and escaped, but not before setting Javier ablaze. For a criminal to simply take the extra time to stop and finish the job like that, isn't it a bit too convenient that he just dies suddenly yesterday of unknown causes when found to have survived the first murder attempt?" He reasoned with them, causing even Bob to reflect thoughtfully.

"That does seem plausible." Francine admitted.

"Even if that were true, there was simply not enough evidence that we could discover in the room that would point to such a conclusion." Bob stated, folding his arms as if that settled the matter.

"All the same, I was just assigned to this case." Ralph lied again.

He was starting to feel really bad about this entire affair. As much as his common sense was screaming at him to just drop the case and ignore the obvious murder in front of his snout, he knew that he wouldn't let another person get hurt again on his watch. He wouldn't allow the law to turn a blind eye again, not like before.

"This is highly unusual." Bob's brow furrowed, his expression darkening. "Francine and I were assigned this morning. Let me call back to the station and figure this nonsense out." He stuffed his big forefoot into his pocket and pulled out a phone before tapping the big touch panel numbers with his trunk tip.

Francine lightly rapped his shoulder with her own trunk before whispering to him, "I'm going to make a quick pit stop to the loo, okay?"

He stopped dialing with a worried expression, "Is it what I think it is?"

She gave a quick glance over at Ralph, who was looking at them with interest. She said in hushed tones, "Probably nothing to be worried about. I'm only late by about a week."

"Almost two weeks." Bob hissed back.

"Shush." Giving him daggers, another look over at Ralph to be sure he didn't overhear their private conversation. "I'll test tonight, alright? Happy?" Without waiting for him to respond, she turned to the wildebeest. "It was nice seeing you again, Officer Grayz. See you back at the station! Good luck!" She waved with her trunk at him as she quickly made her way down the hallway.

"Just stay right there, I'll sort this out." Bob grumbled before turning aside and becoming absorbed in the call.

Ralph was bristling with adrenaline. He knew what he needed to do, but did he have the courage to do it? The elephant was facing away to the point his large ear was covering up all peripheral vision. He probably had a few minutes at best to sneak into the room, do a quick inspection and duck out before Bob had an inkling that he had been in there at all. He hesitated briefly. Despite him wanting to seek out justice for what was hundreds of victims, why did it seem like he was breaking some law to do it?

Steeling himself, he dipped as low as he could under the police tape, put conveniently at elephant level. He immediately went over to the bed and inspected the life support machines. They were in standby mode, a small green light indicating they were receiving power. He knelt down to the floor and trailed the cord back to the wall, nothing seemed amiss there. It was unclear if it was ever unplugged or not.

Ralph continued to survey the room quickly, yet everything was in order. It truly did look like Javier just stopped breathing and suffocated on his own broken lungs. Yet that still didn't make sense, if these machines were made to keep him alive, why did they fail suddenly? Something wasn't adding up and it was clear there was nothing more to be gained from searching this room. As Bob put it, it seems pretty cut and dry. Too clean. The only thing of note was the slight hint of stink lingering on the bed sheets.

Swiftly exiting the room, he was relieved to see the elephant still on the phone. It appeared he was waiting for someone on the other end to pick up. Ralph stepped forward and tapped the big guy on the arm. "Excuse me, don't worry about it. It's probably a mix up back at the station. I'll be heading back now."

With a satisfied look, Bob clicked the phone call off and stuffed it back in his pocket. "Good, I wasn't really looking forward to dealing with anymore paperwork. Stay out of trouble, Officer Grayz." He winked, lightening up a little. "It is way too early to be wrapped up in getting put in the hospital while on the job." He guffawed heartily at his jab, causing Ralph to glower.

"You have a good day, Officer Trunkaby." The gnu waved, switching back to formality. It was a cold reality that not all colleagues would be a pleasure to work with here in Zootopia, he realized.

Leaving the laughing elephant behind, he stepped into the elevator and took it all the way down to the ground floor. This entire visit had been a bust. There was nothing to be gained here, even at the scene of a murder he couldn't convince anyone what had happened right here in the hospital. No wonder everyone just turned a blind eye to anything involving the Dark Flame Wolf, it seemed it was very hard to pin things down on her. Yet he was face to face with that villain. He knew she existed and was responsible for these killings.

He was broken out of his ruminations when the ER doors busted open with nurses wheeling in a maned wolf on a gurney. He was moaning in pain and the triage technicians were already jamming in a needle into his arm as they started the IV drip. Ralph was brushed to the side, doing his best to stay out of their way as they rushed past him.

"What do we have?" The head nurse called out.

"Multiple lacerations with third and second degree burns across most of his upper body. We also have a broken femur and kneecap from blunt trauma impact." One responded almost immediately.

"Do we have a name?" She fired back.

"Yes, Christopher Guara." Another chimed in.

Ralph's ears perked up at the sound of the burns. "Excuse me, I am ZPD, may I have a word with the patient?"

The head nurse, a tiger, growled at him with teeth bared. A minor infraction in and of itself, but given the current situation, he was going to let it slide. "This fox is in critical condition, and if his leg is not set properly and these burns treated, his condition could take a turn for the worse!" She snapped, while simultaneously ordering the remaining nurses to continue pushing him in through the swinging doors to the operating rooms. "Now if you would please step out of the way, you can have all the time in the world to question him later after we have treated him!"

Left speechless at her ferocious devotion to her job, Ralph had forgotten to correct the tiger on how that patient wasn't a fox. He stared after them as they disappeared from view behind the ER doors. He noticed one of the nurse technicians who had wheeled him in off at the reception desk filling out a clipboard of papers. "I'm sorry, but would you mind telling me where that maned wolf was found?"

Without looking up at him, "He was found dragging himself along the streets of Happy Town. It looked like he had survived a very large fall. Now if you'll excuse me." She said curtly before moving away from him.

With all leads pointing to dead ends here, Ralph hung his head and trudged out of Mercy Hospital. He had come here with such high hopes only to be met with failure. The only thing that followed him back to the ZPD was the persistent stench of skunk.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – Zootopia Police Department – Off Freedom Circle Across from City Hall_  
 _Wednesday – 1:26 PM – Sunny/Clear Skies_

"Afternoon Clawhauser, hope you are doing better!" Ralph greeted upon entering the ZPD foyer, doing his best to appear cheerful.

The cheetah looked up from his phone, seemingly lost in some rowdy Gazelle app. Remembrance dawned on his face as he regarded Ralph. "Oh, oh! The Chief wanted to speak with you!"

This was unusual and somewhat disconcerting. "What about?" He asked warily, stepping up to the desk.

Stashing the phone away in a shelf beneath the reception marble top, Clawhauser stared blankly at the wildebeest. "What about what?"

"What the Chief wanted to talk to me about." Ralph gently reminded.

"Right, right, right!" Clawhauser admonished himself. "It was something about doing more than you should."

"That's it?" Ralph flapped his ears impatiently.

The cheetah's face fell, "Well yeah, that and he told me that I need to stop eating so many donuts."

"I'm sure he has your best interests at heart." Ralph consoled, genuinely meaning his words.

It wasn't right for an officer to be in the shape Benjamin Clawhauser was in. Not only was it unhealthy, but it was not becoming of a police officer who could be called upon to do physically demanding tasks. Ralph resolved to later invite Clawhauser to join him in his training regime to help the cheetah get back into a more fitting body type.

"I keep trying to move on from them, but it's like they keep calling me back." He flicked off a colored sprinkle from his blouse.

Leaning an arm on the desk, Ralph agreed, "I know how that is. Sometimes your mind gets set on something, it becomes really hard to think or do much else."

"Sometimes I feel like I don't care what happens to my body. I just feel compelled to pursue this." Ben continued, finding an outlet in Ralph. "I know what some of the others think of me. They laugh at me when I'm not looking, but I sometimes hear them. I didn't always used to be this fat."

Ralph moved to speak, but was interrupted by a suave voice. "Hey, Benji Barnhouse!" The voice caroled, belonging to a crimson fox with shades perched on his brow. He paused to regard the wildebeest with curiosity. "Ah, and good to see you out and about after that stink bomb incident this Monday. I almost didn't think you'd make it through the night."

Ralph's ears flapped down flat. As much as he respected Officer Hopps, her partner, Nick Wilde, left a bit to be desired and seemed to grate on his nerves more than most. "Amazingly enough, I'm fine. The doctors did a great job removing the stench and ensuring we were in good health."

Nick sniffed a few times before wrinkling his snout. "You sure about that? I can still smell it lingering on your fur, almost like an acquaintance I bumped into yesterday. You should get a few tips from my partner, Hopps. She is already smelling right as rain."

"You already saw her this morning?" Ralph queried.

Nick shrugged. "Briefly on my way out to work. Speaking of which," He waggled a finger at the gnu, "Aren't you supposed to be having the day off? With work ethic like this, you're putting my partner to shame!" He chuckled a bit at this.

"Well…" Ralph sputtered for the words to come, "I had a few more pieces of paperwork to file for my account access here."

"But you already have an account." Clawhauser interjected, in a stark moment of clarity.

Ralph gave the cheetah a withering glance, "The point is: I need to be on my way so I can finish this up and get home to my family." He didn't know why he was so upset all of a sudden, but he just felt like he was wasting time here talking rather than investigating the current issue at hand.

"Don't forget to see the Chief! He's expecting you!" Ben chimed in once again, being very pleased with himself at being so helpful.

With a single tap of his finger, Nick knocked the shades over his eyes as he clicked his tongue at Ralph, "From experience, it's best not to keep him waiting. He can be pretty cranky at the best of times." And in a more hushed whisper, "Still, get with my partner, she can assist in your manly scent."

Leaving both the cheetah and smirking fox to their talk, Ralph waved a hoof in parting before taking the elevator to the third floor. While waiting for it to reach its destination, he raised an arm and sniffed under it, he didn't seem to smell that bad. Granted, foxes have much better senses of smell than many other mammals, but he had half a mind that Nick was making the smell seem worse than what it probably was.

His ears popped up suddenly. The stench! That's right! That criminal had access to weaponized skunk musk. She had made it into a bio-weapon capable of serious olfactory damage to the point of unconsciousness. Not to mention the odor was most likely on the Dark Flame Wolf. He just needed to cross reference any cases where skunks were involved for their musk and figure out any leads. And…didn't Nick say Ralph smelled exactly like someone he met yesterday?

Enthusiastic about this new, potential lead, he was getting ready to pop a hoof to the ground floor button when the sliding doors opened. There standing before him was Chief Bogo, who lowered his glasses at him to look over the rims. "Ah, Officer Grayz. Just the wildebeest I was wanting to see." Stuffing a folder under his arm, he motioned the gnu to follow him, "Come with me to my office."

The silence between them was oppressive. There wasn't anything outright menacing in Bogo's demeanor, but it was quite clear that he was not to be disobeyed at this very moment; not like Ralph would try anything with his current boss anyway. The Chief opened his office door and waved him on in ahead. After taking a seat in one of the chairs seated before Bogo's desk, Ralph saw the buffalo pace around the desk before sitting in his faux-leather chair with a grunting sigh.

Without a word, Bogo surveyed Ralph as he set aside the folder and took off his glasses before setting them down on a small stack of papers he no doubt purposely neglected to sign this morning. "What are you doing, Officer Grayz?" He said with monotone, his eyes intense.

"I'm not sure I understand, sir." Ralph admitted, looking rather bewildered.

The Chief placed a hoof on the desk, his fingers tapping impatiently. "Do not play coy with me, Grayz. I will not allow for insubordination in my department."

Ralph's heart started beating faster, his own hooves wringing together in his lap. "Sir, I don't believe I've done anything wrong."

Bogo groaned as he rubbed his forehead, exasperated that he was going to have to spell it out for the new recruit, "Officer Grayz, I respected greatly your work in Bunnyburrow. Your handling of the bunny snatcher case was remarkable and worthy of note. Your exemplary record precedes you and was one of the major reasons I accepted your transfer to Zootopia, to Precinct 1. However, I do not need another Officer Hopps around here, green around the ears and yet full of themselves, thinking they can change the world."

Ralph was more confused than ever, "But sir, isn't Hopps one of your best officers?"

"She is, but because of pure, dumb luck than anything else. She has since proven her mettle, but it does not excuse her methods getting there." Bogo had to stop himself from grinding his own teeth.

"Then I don't understand how her career and actions relate to me." Ralph reasoned.

"Hopps has a knack for doing what is necessary to get the job done, despite the ramifications those actions might cause others and this unit." He jabbed a finger down on the desk, causing it to rattle slightly. "I allow it only because she continually gets the job done and the results are far more positive than negative, but I do not need to track more than one do-gooder cop who thinks they are above the law to see justice done."

A growing lump in the pit of Ralph's stomach was causing him to get nauseous. "Sir, I'm only trying to do my job here. Isn't that what you-"

Bogo snapped at him, cutting him off, standing up as he did so, "Your job, Sergeant, was to finish your in-processing here, not to take someone else's shift for your first night! Your job today, Grayz, was to get some much-needed rest at home and come back bright and early tomorrow! Your job is neither to investigate a crime scene at Mercy Hospital, nor call in requests for evidence relating to your involvement in the Dark Flame Wolf case on Monday!"

"But sir, I was just investigating the weapon used on Hopps and me…" Ralph pleaded.

"On a shift that you weren't ever supposed to be on!" Bogo roared. "The fact I even allowed it was stretching my leniency for your prior record! I was willing to give you a shot at proving yourself and you did not perform! I thought by at least putting you with Officer Hopps and Wilde, you would stay out of trouble!"

"Hopps also got gassed the same as me." Ralph tried to point out.

"Do not change the subject here! You are not to pursue this case any further. I will not be filling out any paperwork for a dead cop because they tried to tackle the Dark Flame Wolf single-handedly! Go home, Grayz. Do I make myself clear?" Bogo boomed, his entire frame leaning over the desk.

Ralph cringed at the onslaught. It was rather frightening to see just how on top Bogo was with the goings-on in his department. Ears down and shoulders slumped, he acquiesced, "Yes, sir. I understand."

"Good." Bogo pointed to the exit, his rage almost instantly disappearing. "You are dismissed. Enjoy the rest of your day, Officer Grayz."

"Thank you, sir." Ralph got up awkwardly. He wasn't sure how he should make his exit. Upon seeing that Bogo had subsequently ignored him and was already situated with his glasses and reading through some papers, he felt it best to just take his leave and vacate the room immediately.

Silently shutting the door behind him, he strode towards the elevators, thinking real hard on what his next steps were. The rest of the station may not be onto his one-mammal crusade in the Dark Flame Wolf case, but it was quite clear that Chief Bogo was. He ran a tight ship if he knew what was going on so quickly.

It was probably best he stay away from the station for now. Perhaps do some off-the-books investigating. Unfortunately, he still needed to swing by his desk to follow up on that lead he knew he had. It wasn't much, but if he could track down where the wolf acquired her armament, maybe he could trace it back to someone who could tell him more about who she is.

Shuffling out of the elevator, he made a beeline for the cubicle farm. Swiftly ducking into his designated desk area, he sat down and logged into his workstation. He took out his cell phone and laid it off to the side, preparing it for what he was going to do. Upon opening his e-mail program, he looked in the options and found the login information for his account. He downloaded the work app onto his phone and inserted the ID and password there. After verifying his credentials, it started populating the e-mails onto his phone.

"Good." Ralph muttered to himself.

He saw that there were no legitimate e-mails waiting for him, but at least he'd be ready if Raina sent anything regarding the evidence request. He was almost counting on her slow nature that she'd process his request before noticing or moving on to the cancellation request that Bogo no doubt put in for it.

Chancing the risk, Ralph opened up the case database and began a new search. Looking up cases involving skunk-related musk, he was a bit disappointed to find the majority of the results to be nothing but Dark Flame Wolf victims. This didn't really help him much since it brought him no closer to where her supplier was. If he could get at whoever that was, he might be able to help put a squeeze on her operations. He highly doubted she'd created these all in-house. That would be very surprising indeed.

Maybe he needed to try a different tact. What if those skunks supplying the musk were forced into it? He looked up missing mammals cases and narrowed it down to mustelids only. One specific case stood out prominently. The report was merely titled, 'Musk Mill,' and was written by a Rhinowitz. Copying and pasting the contents of the document into an email and sending it to himself, he shut off his computer and headed out.

Nodding at Clawhauser on his way out, he exited the station into the bright sunlight. After several days of nothing but gloomy skies and harsh, electrical storms at night, the warm rays were a welcome treat. There was even a nice breeze rustling through his mane. With renewed purpose, he walked over to the Freedom Circle Park and found a shaded bench opposite the ZPD complete with a front row seat to the central water fountains.

Relaxed and comfortable on the bench, Ralph leaned back and tapped through to his e-mail app. Opening the attachment that he had sent himself, he began reading through. There seemed to be a huge, underground smuggling ring that had kidnapped several dozen mammals from across Zootopia and housed them in various warehouses and structures within the city.

His brow furrowed when he discovered that these poor mammals were imprisoned for their musk. To be extracted and sold to the highest bidder. Some of the information was incomplete and it was unknown who the buyers were. The transactions were done on dummy accounts and any tracing only brought the investigators off site to remote locations outside of Zootopia.

Could Dark Flame Wolf be one of the buyers? This thought burst to the forefront of his mind. It seemed quite plausible that she had bought a good haul of skunk musk to use in her criminal activities. However, the date of when this musk mill sting happened was marked over a decade ago. Unless she was extremely frugal in her habits of use, there was no way she could still be using the musk unless she had found another seller. Which also meant that there was still the possibility that this musk ring was still active!

Glancing over at the location of this warehouse, he crinkled his snout. It was located at The Docks, a rather unsavory district just to the northwest of the Rainforest District. He had only heard some rumors about the place, but none of them were very positive. The mill had been burned down in the incident at the time of the report, so there was probably not much to be found there now.

Ralph set the phone onto his leg, observing the small tiger and giraffe kids playing some ball around the water spouts in the small water park in the center. They were doing their best to steal the ball away from the other while avoiding the bursts of water from the ground. It was quite entertaining, almost peaceful sitting here and relishing the day. It seemed tempting to drop the whole thing like Judy said to do and just enjoy his time off.

Without a second thought, he called his wife, Stella. After a few moments, she picked up, "Ralph, what's going on?"

"Oh, nothing, my love." He assuaged her. "Just finishing up some business here at the office. I'll be home a bit later today. How's Rodney doing?"

"He's missing you, of course." There was a tremor in her voice. It was clear she was too. "But he's holding up well. He is just in the other room playing on his PawPad. You know how he is when he gets invested. Sometimes I don't even know he's there."

Ralph chuckled at this. It was true that when Rodney got absorbed into his video games, he barely made a peep. Sometimes they had to peek in on him just to make sure he was alive. "Don't I know it, honey. Give him a kiss and hug for me, will you? And don't worry, I haven't forgotten, I'll pick up some more cans of tomato juice on the way home tonight."

"Just come home safe, that's all I care about." Stella reaffirmed.

"Promise. I love you." He gave a smooch to the phone before clicking off.

Ralph loved his family more than anything. It was what brought him through the roughest times during his stint in Bunnyburrow. It was what made his life worth living after his best friend was murdered in cold blood and nobody lifted a finger to catch the culprit. In many ways, that situation was similar in nature to this Dark Flame Wolf case; too many crime scenes with so little evidence that most people just gave it up as a lost cause.

His best friend was a bunny, just like any other in Bunnyburrow, except that he had grown up with him during primary school. They had clicked almost instantaneously the moment they met. It was such a severe blow to him when he heard the news that his friend was yet another in a long string of murders at the hands of the 'bunny snatcher.' Ralph joined the force in retaliation and within a few scant years single-handedly discovered the perpetrator's identity and secured his arrest.

This was eerily playing out all too similarly. Everyone seemed aware that a problem existed, yet nobody had the evidence or the gall to pursue more. What if the next victim was his wife or son? Would the entire ZPD turn a blind eye yet again just because the Dark Flame Wolf was involved? This thought incensed him, because he could easily see it happening. Too little evidence, not enough leads.

With firm resolve, he got up, stuffed his phone into his pocket and headed off northwards. Glancing at his watch, he decided he could take public transportation, but given how congested the roads looked at this time of day it seemed faster if he hoofed it instead. It would be a rather long walk, but he needed the exercise. Besides, he always wanted to check out the Rainforest District anyway.

* * *

 _The Docks – Old Musk Mill Warehouse – Down Pier 23 across from Prairie Boardwalk  
_ _Wednesday – 3:32 PM – Sunny/Clear Skies_

As sweltering as it was, Ralph appreciated the stroll through the Rainforest District. It was a bit convoluted and the sidewalks weren't always properly marked. It took several backtracks before he finally was on the right path to The Docks. Even his phone app, Haze, had trouble navigating him through the labyrinthine walkways that were literally stacked on top of each other as they climbed higher into the canopy.

It was like crossing a climate threshold. Exiting the jungle and hitting that fresh ocean breeze was refreshing. It was then that the smell of rotten fish and trash hit his nose. Sprawled out ahead of him was a mishmash of shanties and hovels. They were interspersed among the piers that seem to congregate around a central platform that housed a rather large structure with flags and flapping tapestries. Its metal sheet roofing gleamed brightly in the sunlight.

Ralph's heart churned as he began noticing more details about this district. Destitute mothers were doing their best to care for their young cubs while they ran circles around them, breastfeeding a babe in one arm while churning a pot of stew with the other. Each one had on decent-looking clothes at first glance, but upon closer inspection one could see tears and holes in the fabric, as if they had not had a new pair in years.

He was appalled at the living conditions of those on The Docks. Sure, it was a subsection of the Canal District, which was a follow-on from the Rainforest District, so some difference in living circumstances was expected here. However, what he saw far and away blew apart his expectations for the neighborhood. That such a slum on the water could exist in what was supposedly the greatest city in the world was simply incomprehensible, yet here it was in stark reality.

As if on cue, Ralph heard some gunshots off in the distance about four piers down followed by a splash of water. He wanted to rise to the call of duty and investigate the sound, but he also knew he had no backup and would be putting his own life at risk. Something he wasn't going to do since he promised his wife he'd return home safely. Besides, he wasn't even supposed to be here and had no legitimate reason to be visiting this place.

"What have I gotten myself into?" He whispered to himself in awestruck disbelief.

Thankful that he had managed to secure a far better living situation in Zootopia for his family than this cesspool, he sidestepped the piles of trash and refuse and utilized his Haze to navigate to Pier 23, which was thankfully in the opposite direction of the gunfire. Holding back bile, he witnessed a coypu waddle out of her lean-to and dump a bucket of refuse into the water, lacking any other recourse in eliminating the waste. She glanced up at him, gave a disdainful snort and disappeared inside.

The cries of terrified children and youthful adults caused his ears to shoot up with alarm. He had hardly noticed with his head buried into his Haze app that he had shifted to a new location on The Docks. This was a far cry from the shanty town literally several hundred paces behind him. Off to his right was quite literally a boardwalk, complete with food stands, mini-games with plush toys as prizes and even a Ferris Wheel among other rides; a complete amusement park out on the pier overlooking the bay.

Looking back down at his phone, his destination was a bit further along, just one more pier down. Following the route to eye level, he spotted several condemned warehouses across the water, sitting opposite the boardwalk. Turning his attention from the run-down warehouses to the amusement park and then back behind him to the heap of misshapen houses and slums, it was quite startling to see just how wide the disparity was between the three sections of the same district.

Walking along the edge of the pier, he counted down the structures, his eyes on the far one towards the end that looked burned and demolished. He was almost there when a clicking whistle distracted him from his goal. He pivoted to see two orcas regarding him from the water. The mere sight of them gave him the willies. Although knowing they were not fish that one could eat, he couldn't shake the thought from his mind as he saw intelligence behind those small eyes staring back at him.

"Oh hey…!" The one on the left catcalled, his voice sultry and smooth. "We don't see many of your kind around these parts."

This was not exactly what he had expected from something so imposing. Stuffing the phone into his pants, he faced them directly. "What kind?" He seemed mildly irked at the generalized statement.

"The fun kind!" The one on the right clapped, causing some ripples. Between the two of them, Ralph could hardly tell them apart, their markings were so similar.

"I don't follow." He surely didn't. This was his first encounter with anything that lived strictly in the water and the conversation was already unnerving him.

The left one rolled onto its back, exposing its belly to the wildebeest, arousal clearly evident. Ralph sputtered, turning away quickly for propriety's sake as the orca clucked with glee. "No need to be shy. Hitch a ride on an orca, because we intend to pork ya!"

The right one followed suit and exposed himself as well to the now embarrassed gnu, its lower half undulating rhythmically, causing bigger ripples. "Loving on the ocean is the best kind of motion. Don't be shy, we don't bite…much." They both clicked happily at this.

"I'll have you know, I am male." He proclaimed, trying in vain to find some way to get these two obnoxious killer whales off his back and to reclaim any shred of dignity left. Never in his life had he been propositioned like this.

Both orcas stopped their movements a bit, taking in this revelation. The left one gurgled, "It's okay, big boy. We got some fun for you too!" His movements renewed in the water.

"I am happily married!" He stated angrily. Surely, they would respect the sanctity of marriage.

Another awkward silence as the two thought this over. The right one rolled back onto its stomach before swimming closely, blowing bubbles as it did so. "No need to explain yourself, we see this all the time. You're among friends here. We know the allure of exotic flesh takes away even the most devout. For you, we could even make a discount!"

These were prostitutes! Ralph was stunned. This was the last thing he had expected to encounter here in Zootopia and yet here they were, in broad daylight, conducting business in a part of town that most people probably ignored or purposefully forgot. Who knew what else was going on in Zootopia in the lesser patrolled areas of the city?

With a grim look, he whipped out his badge and flashed it. "I'm also a cop."

That did it.

"Oh shit!" The left one squealed as both flapped the surface with their tails and took off like a shot into the deep. Within moments, all that was left of them were the small swells left in their wake.

Shaking his head in disgust, Ralph continued on down the pier, trying his best to block out that embarrassing ordeal. Was it that hard to tell wildebeests apart by sex? He was so lost in those thoughts that he passed his point of interest and had reached the end of the walkway.

Studying the warehouse, it had clearly burned down in a cataclysmic fire some time ago. The building next to it suffered some damage, but was spared from the worst of it. It seemed whoever responded to this fire managed to contain it to a single structure. There was no roof, and only a third of the outer wall was still left standing in varying degrees of decay. Ash and soot were still prevalent everywhere, but the majority of the mess had been blown away by years of wind.

Ralph's countenance fell. Surveying the site, this lead looked to be a wash too. Resigned to at least make the effort, he stepped over some debris and started sifting through the rubble. There wasn't much left to discover, the heat from the blaze must have been so intense that it had incinerated most things within.

He wandered the layout of the warehouse, its floor plan laid bare to the elements. With no ceilings and over half the walls gone or only reaching waist height, it was quite easy to navigate around. There was a rather large open space with several cages scattered about. Some were the size of small mammals while others were large enough to house something like him. Most seemed broken and unusable, which was a relief. He couldn't fathom the idea that one would want to cage up their fellow mammal like this.

A fluttering piece of white paper caught his eye. It was a ledger half hanging off a recognizable table. Picking it up, he shuffled through the cracked and weathered pages, stained from years of exposure. Although the text was barely legible, he could still make out some parts of the document.

It seemed to be an inventory list of mammals that they had captured and musked here. He could see they had it organized by type. Curious, he carefully flipped the pages and landed on skunks. There were three who had been captured and imprisoned here: Alverin, Nates, and Stinkman. Whipping out his phone, he tapped the screen and made a note of their names, intent to research their whereabouts now. Hopefully they were still alive and maybe he could talk to them regarding this incident and any potential connections to the Dark Flame Wolf.

A notification on his phone garnered his focus. He tapped it and opened up his inbox. Inside was an e-mail from Raina! His heart skipped a beat as he read that the evidence release still needed his signature. He quickly downloaded the document, e-signed it and attached it back onto the e-mail to be sent back. Raina probably hadn't even gotten to the cancellation order from Chief Bogo. There might be a small window of time he could exploit here.

Satisfied with that, he tucked away his cell and took the ledger. Seeing as this was the only piece of evidence worth collecting from the site, he carefully tucked it under his arm and headed out to the main walkway. He started to head back when a soft clicking could be heard from the water's edge. Furtively, he took a few steps and looked over the pier. Below in the water was the head of an orca peeking out from the clouded surface.

"What did you want?" Ralph sighed.

The whale merely stared past him, "Why were you interested in that place?"

This question was certainly unexpected. Ralph followed his gaze back to the burned down-structure before turning and answering, "I'm investigating what basically amounts to a cold case."

"I was there, you know." The orca squeaked.

"Here? When it burned down?" He pointed back towards it.

A small bob in the water indicated confirmation, "I was but a calf with my mother at the time. We saw the whole thing. Someone came to save all the children who had been kidnapped and taken here."

"Did they burn down the place?" He probed, now interested in what this whale had to say.

"I don't know for sure." Seeing the look on the gnu's face, he followed up hastily, "But I did see a wolf among the children, leading them out of there."

This riveted Ralph's attention. "A wolf, you say?"

Another bob, "Yes, a wolf. She was clothed in crimson and was making sure all of the cubs and calves were led to safety."

A wolf in red…that did sound a lot like their Dark Flame Wolf. What was puzzling was her interest in these children. This was not the modus operandi he had seen in all the reports they had on her in the police database. This new wrinkle seemed to complicate further this overall picture he had of her in his mind.

"Was there anything else you could tell me about her?" He grilled.

A small shake of the head was all he got. "I'm afraid not. My mother suggested we head on. It was best we not tarry around since it seemed quite dangerous at the time."

"Understandable." Ralph was mildly disappointed. Still, he did know a bit more than he had before investigating this rubble heap.

The orca rose a bit higher from the water, his former look returning to his eyes. "You sure you don't want some of this? I promise I'll go gentle. I know that we could hurt many of our clients very easily, but I have learned some self-control that it can be very pleasing to you too."

Not this again. He shook his head. "No, thank you." He waved a hoof at the whale. "Why are you even doing this? Surely you are better than this. Didn't your mom leave you something to work for?"

The orca gave what seemed to be a shrug of its fins. "She died shortly after the burning of this place. I've been living on The Docks most of my life since then. This is all I know how to do now. It is what I am best at, pleasing clients and appeasing foreign appetites."

This story crushed Ralph's pity. He had sorely misjudged this whale at first glance. Although the method through which he earned his living was abhorrent, it seemed to be more a byproduct of the circumstances that his life thrust him in than anything else. It seemed that, in a short span of a few days since arriving in Zootopia, Ralph had seen more despair and anguish among its citizenry than he had ever expected.

"What's your name?" He asked, sincerely wanting to know.

The orca replied, a bit bashful that someone actually wanted to know what his name was, "I'm called Sebastian."

"I'm Ralph." He leaned over, putting his hooves on his knees. "What happened to you?"

"What happens to every calf that is forgotten by those who are supposed to watch out for them. We get lost." Realizing that Ralph would not accept his open invitation, Sebastian melded with the water and was gone.

Pondering the conversation heavily, Ralph had a heavy walk back across The Docks. His mind swirled with a bunch of thoughts about the state of things in Zootopia. It wasn't until he was midway through the Rainforest District that he realized he had three names he needed to look up to see if they still were alive and resided within the city limits.

* * *

 _I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. This was the primary chapter where Ralph had interaction with a lot of canon characters from the movie and it was delightful to see him interact with each of them in his dogged pursuit of the Dark Flame Wolf. Despite the first scene being a complete wash for him with minimal story progression, it was important to see how the rest of the ZPD and its employees viewed the entire situation and Ralph's investment in it. It was also good to get an idea of what happened to Christopher after his fight with Murana, setting him up for a later appearance. The middle scene was very important because it is the turning point for the entire investigation. Ralph tries to research an avenue of breadcrumbs that no one before him has tried doing. This leads him to The Docks, which was a fantastic new location that I was more than happy to put my spin on and even depict it in a way not many were expecting. A great location that I'm setting up now for future use when readers least expect it. Ralph may have struck out all morning, but it seems his luck might just be turning around in figuring out how to capture Dark Flame Wolf!_


	10. Wednesday - Trailing the Flames - Evning

_Rainforest District – Tinderspire Apartments – Fourth Tier Canopy, Forest Block 2A  
_ _Wednesday – 5:47 PM – Scattered Clouds Outside – Rainforest: Wet/Humid_

Ralph was miserable. He learned very quickly that he should have done his research while still in the open breeze of The Docks. Instead, he had hightailed it back into the Rainforest District before sitting down at a bench to do some browsing for the three names on the ledger: Alverin, Nates and Stinkman. It was at a special time of day in the district where they unleashed the overhead sprinklers to simulate the rain across the entire area and he was soaked.

Completely unprepared, he dashed underneath a nearby awning. Shaking his entire body of every droplet he could fling off, he slouched up against the front façade. It appeared to be a restaurant with a few patrons waiting outside as the diners inside were slowly filtering out after finishing their meals. Everyone seemed to have the same idea and was huddled underneath the overhang, watching the evening 'storm' pass over.

Shaking the phone out of his pocket, he used his inner shirt to wipe off the screen. Tapping in the names one after another into the yellow pages, he discovered that only two lived within the city limits of Zootopia. According to the police database, Alverin had moved to a neighboring province nearly a decade ago, shortly after that musk mill incident occurred. Nates was on the far side in Sahara Square. That just left Steven Stinkman to visit first, who was in an apartment complex here in the Rainforest District.

The multitude of walkways, roads and pathways leading up and down the canopy tiers was confusing. Even Haze had a rough time navigating Ralph to the necessary waypoints to find the Tinderspire apartment building. He actually had to double back at one point, go down one tier before coming up another before he was able to access a specific section of the fourth tier of walkways where his destination lay. He was dumbstruck at the sheer lunacy of this district's planning.

It seemed one of the tram rails went directly past the backside of the Tinderspire, which was built into the trunk of a huge Kapok tree. Various windows illuminated the darkness within the foliage covering the upper portions of the trunk. The tram must provide quick public transportation to other parts of the district to the residents here.

The embedded wooden door swung inward with a rattle as Ralph entered a very cramped, yet cozy foyer. It was obviously circular in nature, centered around a faux fire pit with beige, fluffy-cushioned couches. The front desk was carved into a rather gnarled knot that extended out towards the pit. The place was beautifully lit by strung-up lanterns with electrical bulbs in place of candle wicks, the cords wrapping around the room like a holiday display.

A spotted, brown paca suddenly leaped onto the receptionist desk, jingling the small bell that was there. Its square head ending in a rather flat nose, wiggled as it caught scent of Ralph. It was wearing a dapper looking suit and bowtie around its rotund form, a nametag pinned at an impeccably pristine location above his chest pocket with the label, 'Hernandez.'

"I hate to be rude, good sir." Hernandez began, adjusting himself and brushing down any lint from his pressed outfit. "The Tinderspire is primarily meant for smaller tenants who would do well in such confined apartments. One of your…stature would find themselves most uncomfortable here in this establishment."

Realizing that the attendant was just making note of his overall size, Ralph waved a hoof at him casually, "Oh, no. I'm not here to secure a place to stay. I'm actually here on official police business." He flashed his badge and genially leaned on the counter, nearly face to face with the paca. "Would a Steven Stinkman still be making residence here?"

"Ah-ha! I knew it!" Hernandez said with surprising gusto. "What did he do? Did he flash bomb an entire department store with his stench? Did he sneak into some private property for a juicy story scoop? I know how those shifty reporter types are. I swear he sneaks into other tenants rooms and lays down his putrid odor. Can't you smell it now? Please tell me you got some dirt on him! He seems too squeaky clean to me!"

"Um…no, I'm not here to arrest him. I'm just here to question him on a case I've been working on." Ralph sputtered, genuinely shocked at the vitriol this employee had for Steven.

The paca's expression drooped. "Oh…well then, you can find him on the second floor, block 2A. He's the room at the end of the hall on the left." He hopped down off the desk and slouched into a reclining roller chair. Looking up at Ralph wistfully, he asked, "If you do find anything on Stinkman, will you be sure to let me know?"

"I'll be sure not to do that." Ralph grumped.

He didn't really like the attitude of this critter. It was very unprofessional and rude. He made a mental note to see who the general manager was of this apartment complex and report Hernandez. Shaking his head, he took his leave of the paca and headed towards the back of the main room where the spiral staircase led up and down the trunk of the tree.

Hernandez was not kidding. The staircase was just wide enough for Ralph to fit through. It was probably perfect for two smaller mammals to stand abreast on a single step, but a wildebeest his size took up the entire width of the staircase. Ducking low, he climbed up the rooted steps and thankfully came out one floor above.

Despite it being inside the trunk of a tree, the kopak variety was very round and had a lot more space than one would expect looking at it from the outside. After exiting the stairs, he came across a singular long hallway stretching out to the other side of the tree, multiple doorways branching off from the lone corridor. Taking the receptionist's instruction, he ambled down the tight hall and turned towards the last room on the left, rapping on it gently.

While he waited for a response, Ralph scoped out the environs and noted that it was much more dimly lit than the entryway. In fact, it didn't have any artificial lighting, instead relying on bioluminescent moss that bathed the corridor in a pale, green glow. The framed window at the end, adjacent to Stinkman's apartment, also provided some exterior light. A faint rumble rattled the entire structure with the passing of a tram car, just yards outside the window. It was close enough to see detail on the passengers inside the cabin.

After a few minutes, he knocked on the door again. This produced a response. He could hear a loud clang, followed by some choice words before several thumps of unknown origin. Flicking his ears this way and that, he could discern the occupant within slowly making his way towards the door. It swung open wide, revealing a very disheveled and tired looking skunk. He had on a pair of khaki pants and a wife beater top of a garish baby blue.

"Good…afternoon, Mr. Steven Stinkman, I presume?" Ralph had to catch himself lest he swoon right at the doorway as it opened. The smell was intense, yet familiar. He knew he shouldn't generalize all skunk musk, but this brought back some bad memories.

"Yeah?" Steven said groggily, rubbing his eyes from sleep. It seemed clear he had holed himself away most of the day. He looked unkept and in desperate need of a shower.

Flashing his badge, "I am Officer Grayz. I'm here to discuss with you an incident that happened to you about ten years ago. Do you have time for me to come in and answer a few questions?"

Mind still foggy from waking up so suddenly to Ralph, Steven just bobbed his head and shuffled out of the way, opening the door wider as he did so. "Sure…"

"Thank you." Ralph nodded before ducking his head down to enter the small doorway.

He surveyed the room and found it very quaint. The outer wall curved around, visibly showing this apartment as being on the edge of the tree trunk. There was a small living area immediately inside with a small stump table with a few chairs surrounding it, all facing a small tube television complete with bunny ear antennas. A few steps up on one side lead to a higher deck in the main room where a lounging nook looked out through a sash window onto the Rainforest District below.

Across from the nook was a small kitchenette that barely had room for even a microwave. The entire place looked like mess as if Steven had barely cleaned the place up after several dozen meals. Beyond that lay a small hallway that supposedly led to perhaps the bedroom or bathroom, maybe both. Of interesting note were a part of open-pawed boots next to a couch by the steps, clearly meant for a much larger mammal than the skunk before him.

"You got a roommate?" Ralph asked curiously. This definitely looked like a one tenant apartment suite. It would be a hard sell to fit two in here.

After flopping down on the couch facing the doorway, arms listlessly falling to the cushions beside him, he gazed up at the large wildebeest. "Huh?" He noticed the gnu's attention to the boots. "Oh, no…those were my mother's. I keep them for scent-imental value." He brought one up to his nose and gave a big whiff, faintly smiling at the memory before setting it back down.

Ralph's brow rose with surprise at the curious sniffing. His mom must have been…rather big. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry. I'm sorry for your loss…"

Steven looked at him curiously, "No, she's not dead. She's just not responding to me." He sniffled. "It's all my fault too. If I hadn't threatened her with leaving, maybe she'd be returning my phone calls and we could be having coffee again like we used to. I miss it already."

Ralph did his best to situate himself on one of the small chairs, awkwardly splaying his legs this way and that to avoid knocking over the stump table. "I'm sorry to hear that. Now, about this event ten years ago. Would you please tell me about the time you were in the musk mill? I will understand if it is too painful for you to recollect, but anything you can tell me would be of great help."

Steven continued on, as if he hadn't heard him all too well. "She's been with me these past ten years and it's been great! Then he came along and ruined everything, trying to woo mom off her paws and into his bed, kicking me out and leaving me to live here alone. It was all because he couldn't handle a little skunk being around him." He wiped his nose with the fur on his arm, not really caring what came off.

"Alright…" Ralph hesitated. He wasn't really sure where to go from here to get the conversation back on track. "So this mother of yours, when did you first meet her?" Since she had been with him just as long as the duration of his release from the musk mill, maybe he could find out more from this angle.

"Meet her?" He paused, making sure he heard Ralph correctly. "She met me. She took me in and raised me as her own. She's been my Mom ever since."

That would explain the boots. Ralph pressed, "So your Mom is not a skunk then?"

"No. Why?" Steven asked, getting suddenly wary. "Does my having a wolf mom upset you? I know how weird it is to have multi-species households in Zootopia. Some people really frown on that sort of thing. Are you one of those types?"

"What? No!" Ralph defended. "I'm just surprised."

"Good." Steven sighed, leaning back into the couch relieved.

He was surprised in more than one way. Skunks had a reputation for being rather unwanted by many in Zootopia just due to the natural musk odor they give off, even when not actively spraying. To have a wolf, with a highly sensitive nose, taking in an orphaned skunk and raising him as her own was highly unusual. What made it more interesting for Ralph was that this adoptive mother was a wolf. Just the sort of mammal he was tracking.

Now noticing the faded pine tree air freshener tied to the skunk's neck, he pointed at it. "That is a very unique necklace you have there. Where did you get it?" There was something oddly familiar about it, but Ralph couldn't exactly place it.

Steven clutched the tree, giving it a sniff despite it having lost its scent long ago. "My mother gave it to me as an anniversary gift."

"You two seem very close by the way you talk about her." Grayz gave a genuine smile to ease the skunk's inhibitions.

Steven seemed to relax at the thought of her, "Yeah, she is pretty great. I loved this gift so much that I had some molded earrings made for her that look just like it."

That was interesting. "So Steven, do you remember a lot about this musk mill you were placed in?" Ralph had a potential line of questioning that might answer a few things.

"What is there to know? It was cold, dark, cramped and wet. They pulled me out once a week to string me up to some extraction machine, plugged up my butt and drained me. It was a truly awful experience. I'm glad those punks got what was coming to them!" He huffed, crossing his arms.

"You saw what happened to those who imprisoned you and the others?" Ralph leaned forward.

"Of course we did. The whole place went up in a huge blaze. It was hard to miss the massive explosion and the burned bodies." Steven idly scratched an itch on his ear.

"Who rescued you? Was it the ZPD?" Ralph knew the answer, but he wanted to see what Steven would say.

The skunk scoffed, having some contempt apparently for the ZPD. "Hardly. It was a wolf in red clothing that let us all out of our cages and burned the place to the ground."

That correlated with the orca's story perfectly. Eager now, Ralph grilled, "So this wolf that helped you escape, this is the same one as your mother, correct?"

This caused Steven's eyes to bulge, his body shifting uncomfortably. "N-no…two different wolves."

"That's amazingly convenient." Ralph mused aloud.

"Amazing…yeah." The skunk seemed far more attentive now. "Where did you say you were from again?"

"I'm Officer Grayz. I'm with the ZPD." He responded promptly.

Steven visibly winced at the answer. "Look, I don't know what you are gunning for with these questions, but it was an incident in the past I'd rather not drudge up again."

Disappointed, Ralph conceded defeat. "Fair enough. Would you mind giving me the phone number or address of your mother so I can follow up with her later?"

It appeared that the skunk was about to deny this request when a knock on the door alerted them both. Steven excused himself to get up and answer the door. The moment he opened it, a blur of black and white surged through the doorway, nearly knocking him off his feet. Ralph's hoof unconsciously went to the gun that wasn't there by his belt strap. He only relaxed and sat back down when he deduced it was just another skunk, wrapping herself around Steven, peppering him with kisses.

"I'm so glad I finally found you!" The female gasped in-between pecks. "I figured you had just miswrote your address and phone number after our date yesterday! Good thing for the internet! Did you know you are quite easy to find, Steven?"

"Courtney?!" He stammered, taken aback by the sudden appearance of her. "What are you doing here?" He struggled to disentangle himself from her clutches.

Wrapping arms around his neck, bringing him in for another kiss. "Why wouldn't I be here?" She giggled. "You were quite the charmer and seemed so into me yesterday. Mind if I let you in on a secret too?" She looked around, clearly not noticing the large wildebeest sitting right there before whispering in his ear, "I was very much into you as well."

"Ahem, am I disturbing something?" Ralph grunted. This was going seriously off the rails.

This sudden disturbance garnered a shriek out of Courtney as she skipped back, huddling herself embarrassed in the corner by the entrance, giving Steven a chance to gasp some air. "Eeek! I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there, sir! That was very rude of me!" She apologized, hiding her face in her luxurious tail.

Ralph was not entirely impressed with either skunk before him and it did little to improve his outlook on them as a species either. She sported a black lace stocking shorts that seemed way too small and revealing. Her upper half was a jaggedly cut pink tank-top that was way too far up past the navel. It was obvious what her intent was for coming here just by a single glance.

"It's quite alright." Ralph raised a hoof to calm the frightened skunk. "I'm just here on official ZPD business. I was just talking to Mr. Stinkman here about his mother."

"Yeah," Steven began to agree, his breathing starting to calm down, "but we're done now and Officer Grayz will now be going." He finished with an air of finality.

"His mom?" Courtney perked up, a beaming smile blossoming on her face. "Oh, I love her! She is such a sweet wolf!"

"Courtney!" Steven hissed, trying to give her a look to shut her up.

"A wolf, you say?" Ralph grinned, looking from Steven to Courtney. "Seems like an odd thing here in Zootopia. A wolf adopting a skunk for a son."

Without even thinking, Courtney rambled on, "Absolutely! That's what I thought too!" She bounced, causing her breasts to jiggle, forcing a blush on Steven. "She's the nicest wolfess I've ever met though! She's the one who hooked us up together!" She made a gesture to indicate her and Steven. "She completely supports us 100%! She clearly has refined taste."

Quickly flipping out his phone to write a note, he probed, "Steven here didn't exactly mention her name. Would you?"

Steven glared at Ralph, clearly recognizing what he was doing. "Her name? It's Mrs. Wolford, she works at the bank…mmmph!"

Steven moved in to fold himself around Courtney, pressing into a deep, tongued kiss. Unfortunately, he was not fast enough to silence her before she blurted out his Mom's name. She practically melted into the kiss, nearly threatening to bring them both to the ground as she went limp, forcing Steven to flex hard to keep them both upright.

"Wolford…" Ralph repeated slowly, typing in the name. "Thank you, Courtney." He smiled, standing up and preparing to leave. "You both have been most helpful. Thank you for your time."

Unlocking his lips from Courtney's, Steven spat, "You're welcome. Please go, I'm busy with my girlfriend." He didn't know why he said it, but it was the first thing that came to his mind to further speed along Grayz's departure.

"Your girlfriend?!" Courtney practically squealed, giddy at the notion. She basically tackled him to the floor in a barrage of tongue lashings, smothering him as he squirmed and writhed on the floor. "I didn't know you felt that way about us so soon, but I can get behind this!"

Realizing the error of his judgment, he whispered hoarsely between kisses, "Help!"

"You know what? I'm just…going to leave you two alone." Ralph bowed his head, hiding his grin. He slowly shut the door, secretly relishing the doomed wide-eyed look on Steven's face as he reached out to the wildebeest before the click of the door as it closed on him.

With renewed determination, Ralph was more certain than ever he was on the right trail now. It seemed no coincidence that the mother of this skunk was a wolf just like the one who helped free the victims from that musk mill on The Docks. What was more peculiar was the name drop Courtney revealed.

Wolford was not an unknown name to Ralph. In fact, it was the name of the very work colleague he had taken a shift for that fateful Monday night. However, there were simply too many Wolfords in Zootopia to just make a snap conclusion like that. Still, there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that he had actually met this wolf before. He couldn't quite place it, but that pine tree necklace of Steven's was so familiar and the fact he had a wolf mom was setting off alarm bells in Ralph's head.

Ralph was so lost in thought that he was startled coming down the stairs when Hernandez ambushed him from the desk. "So did you find any dirt on the little stinker? Is he peddling prostitutes in his room like that skunk that just went up to see him?"

The wildebeest's mane bristled at the paca's attitude. "No. He was the very definition of a model, upright citizen." He lied, just to not have to handle this conversation right now.

"That's a shame." Hernandez said dejectedly. With a thought, he zipped out a business card and had perched it between two claws, outstretched for Ralph to grab it. "Well, if you do find anything, here's my contact information. Don't hesitate to let me know!"

"I won't." Ralph stomped out the door, leaving the Tinderspire with a bewildered receptionist looking out after him.

Gratefully getting into an open tram car, he willed himself to relax as he leaned against the siding. Enjoying the aerial view, he opened up his internet app phone and began looking up the name, Wolford. Knowing that the suspect in question was female, he could rule out his co-worker and over a few dozen more Wolfords within the city. Who was left didn't leave him with any good feelings. There were half a dozen female Wolfords in the city, but one stood out to him for reasons he wished weren't true.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – The Shoppes – Section D, Sandwich Shop 'Nocturnal Bites  
_ _Wednesday – 8:59 PM – Dark Overcast Skies / Constant Rain with Electrical Currents_

"That's quite a serious accusation." Judy commented, leaning forward onto her paws, elbows on the table.

"I know! That's why I am so uneasy about this case now." Ralph exhaled, slouching into his chair, looking down at the bunny from across the table. His sandwich was half-eaten, yet he didn't feel hungry anymore.

After his visit to the Lemming Bros. Bank earlier that evening, he was more certain than ever who the Dark Flame Wolf was. However, there were a few pieces missing that was preventing the entire picture from being whole.

He didn't really have many colleagues to turn to regarding this particular case. Remembering what Chief Bogo said about Officer Hopps and how they seemed to have made some sort of connection earlier that morning, she was as good a choice as any to hear his crazy theory out. Ralph had called her up around 2000 sharp just after he had been summarily kicked out of the bank by a very irritable otter.

Earlier that evening, he had looked up the remaining Wolfords in Zootopia that were female and one resided as the CEO of Lemming Brothers Bank. Again, being closer than any of the other Wolfords to his present location and also being the one Courtney singled out, he went there first.

It was already on the verge of closing, but he insisted to speak with Mrs. Wolford. The secretary, which was strangely enough an otter, was very irate. It wasn't that he was particularly rude, especially not to a police officer or even a potential customer of the bank, it was more of the fact that something else seemed to be occupying his attention and focus. Having a cop come in and investigate his boss was probably not high on the otter's list of things to be dealing with that day.

"As you can see, she is not in. She hasn't been in this entire day." The otter fussed, whose name turned out to be Ronald. He was busy filing last minute papers on her desk before locking the place up for the night.

"Can you leave a message for me or at least tell me when she usually gets in during the mornings?" Ralph pressured gently.

"Who knows?" Ron threw his hands up, accidently knocking his big spectacles off kilter from his small snout. Adjusting them quickly, he twitched his nose. "I've only been working here for not even three days. She has a very erratic schedule and I couldn't possibly tell you when she'll show up to work next. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to close this place up and all customers and visitors must leave now. You have a good evening, officer."

The otter did his best to use polite words and phrases, but it was clear the wildebeest was no longer welcome in the upper offices of Mrs. Wolford. Backing up as the diminutive otter closed and locked the doors and shut off the lights, Ralph rode down the elevator with Ron. Each standing next to each other in silence, they waited for the cabin to hit ground floor.

As it opened, the otter's pocket rang as he whipped out a phone and began talking into it, waving off Ralph as he walked away, absorbed in his conversation. "No, I have no idea where she is! She didn't show up at all today…"

As the tiny voice trailed off down the street, Ralph plucked out his own phone and called Judy. They chose to meet at Nocturnal Bites, an evening diner that served fungi-based sandwiches with mushrooms grown fresh from the Nocturnal District, or so it claimed. It was a very unassuming joint, part of a bigger, outlet shopping center outside the main Preyda corporate building. It wasn't long before Hopps showed up and they went in to discuss what Ralph had been doing the entire day.

Clasping her paws together, Judy hovered over the table. "So let's go over what you do know." She opened up the ledger and flipped to the pages with the names of the skunks. "There was a musk mill incident which the Dark Flame Wolf was involved in. All perpetrators were killed in the fire and the children and innocents set free by this wolf. A story confirmed by an eye witness of one orca, Sebastian, whom you met at the scene of the crime."

"That's correct." Ralph confirmed, happy that someone was taking the time to hear him out.

"Through further investigation," She continued, "You are claiming that this Steven Stinkman was one of the skunks released from the mill, as evidenced by this ledger. You are now also claiming that this same skunk was adopted by and has been in the care of the Dark Flame Wolf."

"Also correct." Ralph affirmed.

"Finally, you are stating that this same wolf is Mrs. Murana Wolford who is CEO at Lemming Bros. Bank and the wife to fellow police officer, Anthony Wolford." She finished.

"I know it sounds crazy." He hunched over, head in his hooves. "But I now strictly recall seeing her at an orphanage on Monday and she was wearing these pine tree earrings. The same ones described by Steven as having given her as a gift based on his necklace. It's just too convenient!"

Judy whistled, "Yeah, that is a bit of a stretch. There are several key pieces of evidence missing though. We still don't have any paw prints or anything to directly link Mrs. Wolford to any of these crimes."

Ralph dropped a hoof to look at Hopps, "I know, which is why I had put in a request for evidence collection this morning. I was hoping to see if I could find something that could tie this all together, but the Chief put a nix on that!"

Judy tapped a finger to her chin, "I wouldn't be so sure about that. Knowing Raina, she usually finishes jobs in the order she receives them. If anything, she may still be processing your request and has yet to get to Bogo's."

"Still, at the end of the day, I ultimately have nothing and I don't want to just go ahead and accuse someone's wife of being a mass murderer, especially if that person happens to be a fellow cop." He pushed away his plate, no longer feeling hungry now that the pit in the bottom of his stomach had grown.

Ears drooping, she had to agree. "I know what you mean. My first case was a tough one too. I didn't have all the pieces myself to solve it. It wasn't until some outside the box thinking with a dash of luck helped me crack it."

Ralph chuckled, "I've heard all about it. The Night Howler case. Pretty legendary, if you ask me."

Judy blushed, "Well, I'm sure it didn't help that I had to break some rules to get the job done, but Bogo does respect the talent I have in serving justice and making this city a better place."

"He does have some reservations about you." He warned, both laughing at this. "Still though," Ralph turned serious again, "I'm unclear as to the connections between the various victims of the Dark Flame Wolf. Their bios and backgrounds do not coincide and there seems to be nothing really in common with most of them. Some are simple family mammals while others are hardened criminals. Some are male while others female. Some are poor, some are rich. There is no rhyme or reason to it."

"And then she releases a bunch of kids from a musk mill and adopts one." Judy said, trying to complete his thought, her cheek resting on her fist.

"Exactly! What is up with that?" He threw his hooves up in defeat.

Judy smirked this time, finally being able to reveal something most people didn't know. "I have a theory myself about that." Ralph looked like he was all ears. "I can't prove it for all the burned victims, but I can figure out a common link between a majority of them. Some had a history of wife battering or child abuse. Some were implicated in rape or molestation cases. All were involved in some way with the abuse or death of females and children."

"All of them?" Ralph queried incredulously.

"Most, but I'd wager that it extends to all of them." She clicked her tongue. "You see, when I did my own investigation on the Dark Flame Wolf, I was always confused why she went after some, but completely ignored others to include serial killers and horrendous sadists. It's like she arbitrarily chose whom she killed, but that didn't make any sense. That's when I delved deeper into the victims themselves and discovered their rap sheets and all had one thing in common: female and child abuse. This seems to attract her attention."

"Why's that?" He pointed out.

Judy shrugged. "I don't know. As I said, it's just a theory, but it is the one that makes the most sense."

He sat back in the chair, marveling at this new discovery. Things were starting to click into place for him in his head. "But what about those who had a clean record with nothing negative to their name? Why did she kill those victims?"

Tilting forward more, she tapped a finger to the table for emphasis, "For the same reason. I'm willing to bet that somehow it was discovered even those victims were guilty to those same sorts of crimes and she found out about it."

"It does seem a fitting punishment for such an abhorrent act." Ralph mused.

"True, but killing is still a crime." Judy reminded.

"Of course. Why the burning though?" He wondered.

She paused a bit, picking at her own sandwich, "No idea. Maybe it is her calling card. I've no idea on that point."

Just then, Ralph's phone blared out in his pocket, causing them both to jump. He excused himself briefly and checked his e-mail. His eyes lit up as he exclaimed, "Raina has finished the processing. The evidence is ready for pickup and inspection!" His expression immediately wilted. "But Chief Bogo doesn't want to see me at the station again until tomorrow…"

"Nor me." Hopps added. She knew that helping Ralph could possibly land her in hot water same as him, however she figured she could weather it a lot better even if she took all the blame. Besides, she too was once invested in this case the same as Ralph and seeing as he had quite a good lead on it than she had in years, she was willing to chance it. "Tell you what, let's go together and if we get caught, let me do the talking."

"Are you serious?" His eye bulged.

"Of course. We're friends now, aren't we? Let's finish off these sandwiches and head on over to the station before Raina leaves so we can get what you were looking for!" She chippered, taking a huge bite of her sandwich.

With appetite coming back slowly, he finished his own before dumping the trash into the nearby receptacle and heading outside with Judy. The weather had taken a turn for the worse since he had left the bank, with dark clouds covering the sky and streaks of lightning dancing through the heavens.

Walking across Freedom Circle towards the spires of the ZPD, there was a complete lack of vehicles in the side parking lot. Instead of going in the front entrance, they took one of the various side ones and headed down a stairwell to the basement where Raina worked.

They had just opened the swinging doors into the evidence storage and laboratory room where they beheld a young, female sloth slowly putting on her raincoat, her purse already packed and seated on the tall stool beside her. Looking up, her face slowly broke out into a grin, "Good…evening…Officer…Grayz…and…Officer…Hopps. How…are…you…tonight?"

She had barely finished her question when Hopps interjected, "Hey, Raina! We are in a real hurry tonight. Can you tell us where Officer Grayz's request package is?"

After finishing her previous statement, it took Raina several moments to process and respond to Judy's question, causing the rabbit to thump a foot. To this day, Judy had struggles in dealing with sloths. "It…is…in…those…plastic…baggies…over…there." She began to extend her long arm towards a bench beyond her main table she sat at.

Without a moment's hesitation, Judy bounded over there and picked up several packages and handed them in turn to Ralph. "Do any of these look familiar?"

The first package held the shattered remnants of the stink bomb that took out both him and Judy Monday night. Setting it aside quickly with a shiver, he looked at the next baggy. He set all the rest down as he stared at the contents of this one. Inside the translucent plastic was a single earring with specks of blood and some loose follicles of hair alongside it. That wasn't the striking thing about it though. What caught his attention was its shape.

"This is the design!" Ralph snapped his hoof fingers.

Judy looked up from her bags of evidence, "What now?"

"This." He held up the green, pine tree earring. "As I said, Stinkman had a pair of earrings fashioned for his mother that was exactly like his necklace. His necklace was an air freshener with this exact tree design! I swear it!"

"Are you sure?" She grabbed the proffered earring bag and studied it.

"Positive." He nodded resolutely. "This is it. The final piece of the puzzle. The Dark Flame Wolf burned the musk mill, saved the children, adopted this skunk, gave him that necklace, he gave her these earrings, I saw her with them this past Monday night and she lost one when we almost captured her. Stinkman's mother is Mrs. Wolford who is CEO of Lemming Bros. Bank, wife to Anthony Wolford, ZPD officer, and the Dark Flame Wolf."

The words hang still in the silence between them. Judy was simply staring at him with her head half-cocked. "Do you realize how insane that sounds?"

"I do." Ralph admitted, breathing a bit heavier now.

Judy began to pace back and forth, both completely oblivious to the sloth leaving their presence to head home. "This is bad. Mrs. Wolford is a very influential member of Zootopia, having funded and invested in a lot of the city's major organizations and global funds. Not to mention this would devastate Officer Wolford."

"And if we are right and we confront Mrs. Wolford, she is a highly trained and skilled opponent. We would need to call for backup before we moved in on her." Ralph reminded.

"If Bogo believes all of this and agrees to the raid." Judy was alit with purpose now, her own desire to solve this case rising from the ashes like a phoenix.

"You think you can convince him of this?" Ralph was unsure.

"Possibly. It all depends on how we present this to him. Do we know where Mrs. Wolford is now?" She asked hopefully.

He shook his head. "I haven't the foggiest. She seems to have given everyone the slip. Not even her secretary knows where she is. She's not been seen all day by anyone I've talked to. The last possible contact made was probably at Mercy Hospital where she most likely finished the job with Javier Sanchez. Aside from that, it's as if she disappeared."

A huge, resounding boom rocked the foundations of the station, causing the lights to flicker and things to clatter to the tiled floor. "Sweet cheese and crackers! What was that?" Judy crouched, looking up in alarm.

"I don't know, but it didn't sound good! Let's head outside!" Ralph motioned as he dashed out into the hallway.

They had just busted through the side door, swinging it hard and slamming it against the building with a bang. Their eyes immediately flew upwards at the light show above them. A storm had broken out, getting them both soaked, but what was most alarming was the intensity of the thunderstorm. Flashes of brilliant white streaked across the sky, encircling a singular point of space above Tundratown.

"What in the world?" Ralph gaped.

"Do you see what I see?" Judy blinked, trying to believe her eyes.

"I'm not sure." Ralph truly didn't know what to think of it.

Just overhead, above the border wall between Downtown and Tundatown, was a strange ship staying aloft via propellers. The two zeppelin like balloon buoys on each side ended in twin points that was generating a lot of the electrical energy. The lightning crackled and sparked, shooting the dangerous energy across the sky in erratic patterns. The entire ship was lurching to the side as if something was wrong with it.

"Is that…an airship?" Judy was astonished. It seemed so ancient, yet so technologically advanced. Its very existence seemed to be a contradiction.

"It's going down!" Ralph pointed at it.

The ship slanted hard to the left and began to nosedive sharply. The propellers whined ferociously as one burst into flames. There was a loud wail as the engines seemed to rev and could be heard for miles around. The lightning began spraying out in multiple directions, blasting through multiple buildings and setting many on fire. Sirens across the city cried out in unison as many emergency calls were made due to the collateral damage.

It then began to level out from its downward descent and lurched even harder towards Sahara Square. It barely clipped the barrier wall, taking out an entire section of the upper ramparts, shutting down a single heat coil keeping the district hot. Judy cringed as she heard more explosions from the falling debris off the wall. Some of the pieces must have crushed or destroyed multiple vehicles or infrastructure mechanisms. One section of the city suddenly lost all lights. This was a disaster.

"We have to get over there right now!" Judy yelled.

She and Ralph made a mad dash for the nearest cruiser, their eyes on the airship that descended out of view beyond the wall of Sahara Square. A dull roar and plume of sand rose up from beyond the barrier as they hopped into the vehicle. Taking a set of keys from her pocket, Judy started the ignition while Ralph fumbled with his seatbelt. Using the pedals built into the seat meant for smaller cops, she peeled out of the parking space and was speeding down the road.

They barreled out of the tunnel leading through the wall, sirens blaring. The wide open vista of the desert greeted them. With the darkness of night, it was very easy to see where the ship had crash landed. Unfortunately, it was nowhere near any roads or thoroughfares. In fact, it had smashed in the direct center of the biggest patch of sand in the entire district, completely remote from any actual roads they could easily take to reach the crash site.

"Grumpy, carrot farmers!" Judy swore, causing Ralph to gasp at the nature of it. "The closest we can park and walk to that thing is still a good two miles distance! We'll need to request backup at this point."

"I don't think that'll be a problem." Ralph indicated the fellow sirens coming from multiple other directions, all converging on Sahara Square.

Judy got out of the car, having parked on the side of the road, looking out past the dunes at the dull glow of fire and smoke rising from the airship. "What could have possibly caused this? Where did it even come from?"

"I have no idea…" Ralph gawked, scratching his chin.

A sense of dread settled upon them both as they looked on with trepidation at the unknown in their midst. Somewhere deep in the back of his mind, Ralph suspected that, however unlikely, the Dark Flame Wolf was behind this too.

* * *

 _This was an exceptionally fun chapter to write and it came together very fast. I knew that the breakthrough in Ralph's investigation had to come from Steven. I needed to depict Steven, whom we haven't seen since the first day, in such a way that it would be understandable why he was distraught and it would make sense why he wasn't fully prepared for Ralph's questioning. Working their dialogue together, we learn a few things more about Steven and his past history with Murana as his mom. It was also fun to bring back Courtney who, during the time since writing her as originally a cameo back in day 1, has taken on a much bigger role in the story. It will be interesting to see where she goes as a character and how she'll impact events. The second half of the chapter was basically to round out the entire investigation and put a nice topper onto it. Judy Hopps seemed like the perfect character not just to tie this OC-centric fic into Zootopia further, but also as a great sounding board for Ralph, since both had to bend the law to see justice done. This mutual facet of their characters made it easy for them to bond and created a great sequeway into the inciting incident that would kick off the next day._


	11. Thursday - Scents of the Past - Morning

_Rainforest District – Tinderspire Apartments – Fourth Tier Canopy, Forest Block 2A  
_ _Thursday – 6:23 AM – Clear Skies/Slight Fog – Rainforest: Wet/Humid w/ Heavy Fog_

Steven Stinkman was sore all over. More than anything, he was sore in his loins. He groaned as his flopped over onto his stomach, his eyes focusing on the snoring body lying beside him. Courtney was blissfully asleep with one leg draped over his and the rest of her practically spread eagle, forcing him to cower in one, small portion of the bed. Both were naked, having had a long evening and night of love-making.

Stuffing his face back into his pillow, he screamed inwardly at the predicament he was in. He didn't really know why females were attracted to him, first his mom's neighbor and now Courtney. He hadn't asked for any of this. He was just minding his own business, trying to get by and do a good job at ZNN and get paid. These sorts of situations were so far off his radar that he didn't have to think about them, yet here he was, in bed with a voluptuous skunk who wanted nothing more than his babies it seemed. Good thing he used lots of protection, but it was only a matter of time before that went out the window.

Determined that he wasn't quite ready to be a father just yet, he slowly wiggled his way off the bed on his stomach. He was almost to the floor, his left side dangling off the edge when his foot was caught by hers. It slowly wrapped itself around as she rolled onto her side, grappling him with an arm and bringing him in to spoon. She nuzzled his neck and cooed.

"Good morning, baby." She murmured as she began to nibble and suck on his ear.

He shivered involuntarily. He wasn't ready for another round. "G-good morning, Courtney." He responded back, not wanting to be rude.

She huskily whispered into his ear. "You want a quickie before you have to get to work?"

"Uh…Sadly, no. As amazing as that would be, I have an early start today with a meeting with Mr. Lagopus." He lied.

Her expression perked up. "Oh! I didn't know you knew the head of ZNN personally! That's so exciting."

He actually didn't, but he did have a very convincing story as to how it could be possible. "Well, when your mom is a CEO of a major Zootopian bank and investor in ZNN, you tend to get to know the fox pretty well."

"I always thought it odd." Courtney mused, grinding up against him a bit in thought, raising her hind paw to his nose. "Odd that a fox would be trusted enough to run such a vast enterprise."

"Well, strangely enough, he's the boss and everyone working there respects him!" He chippered, wanting to be out of her grip and getting ready to leave. He almost succumbed to the paw she presented to him, her now knowing it was one of his weaknesses.

"Really?" She really was surprised. "I always figured ZNN wasn't really taken that seriously by all the other news companies because of that fact." She jiggled her toes in front of his face.

Steven scowled at this. He didn't like to be reminded of the fact that he was working for a lesser known network. Sure, it wasn't the best job in Zootopia, but it paid the bills and he enjoyed his work there. "Well, either way, it's my job." He said a bit coldly, using this moment to push her hind paw out of the way, get up and hop onto the floorboards.

Courtney's ears drooped. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. Look, how about I make you breakfast? I'm pretty good at that!" She tittered, sliding off the same side as Steven, giving his rump a nice squeeze in the process and causing him to yip.

Rubbing his backside at the grope, Steven glared after her as she skipped into the main living den, humming as she did so. He threw on a light t-shirt and some khaki shorts, being sure to slip a small black cylinder into his pocket. He never started the day without his scent can anymore. It was one of the few ways to utilize his scent in times of danger while still maintaining dignity. Finally, he plopped his iconic ZNN hat onto his head, smooshing down his ears.

He knew he needed to have an excuse to disentangle himself from Courtney. Knowing her, she would want to stay in all day and just snuggle, copulate, or worse, force him into some sort of marriage proposition. Did she even work or have any sort of job?

"What are you cooking?" He sniffed, delectable scents coming from the small kitchenette. His eyes widened with surprise as he noticed she was using the small oven top range installed into the counter. "Wow, you know how to use that?" He never really gave it much attention since he didn't quite know how to cook himself. He let Murana do all that when he was living with her.

"Of course! My dad taught me how to cook when I was little. Being a single parent and all, he wanted to make sure I was self-sufficient and taught me many things so I wouldn't be helpless." She turned to him and smiled. "When and if we ever get a car, I can help fix it brand spanking new if it ever breaks down."

Steven whistled softly. He had to admit, Courtney had some pretty useful skills. Maybe he had misjudged her…a little. "So, what are you making? I don't really recognize it."

"This?" She pointed at the pan with the spatula. "I figured I'd take the bananas you had on the counter getting overripe and make us some fresh banana pancakes." She brought her hind paw back up again and flashed her pads. "If you want, you can have some toe-st for dessert."

His mouth watered at both the description and her dessert. He honestly hadn't had something so homemade since Murana's cooking. Granted, she made waffles rather than pancakes and her paws smelled much stinkier, but they were still delicious. "I could take a few…" He admitted, sitting down politely at the small two-person table, stuffed in the small window nook area opposite the kitchenette.

"Great!" Courtney beamed, flipping a few onto a plate and drizzling it with some syrup she miraculously was able to find in his cupboards. Steven had forgotten he even had that up there. "Hope you love it, honey!" She simpered, nibbling a bit on his ear as she went back to make her own.

His stomach growling at him to unnecessarily remind him how hungry he was, he scooped up his fork and began tearing into it with gusto. He nearly melted with delight as the flavors in his mouth coalesced into a harmony of blissful sweetness and memories. "Mmph, this is just like my mother's!" Steven said with mouth half full.

Courtney glanced back at him. "How is she doing today? I haven't seen her since Tuesday. We need to go tell her we're getting hitched."

Steven blew out chunks of pancake onto his table. Ignoring the stinging in his nose from food particles, "What? No…no…wait." His mind was racing for some excuse to get out of whatever fate Courtney had planned for him. "She's very particular about the types of girls I get with and more so if we were ever to marry. We'd kinda need her approval." He lied through his teeth.

Sliding the fresh pancakes onto her plate, she tilted her head at him, "That's odd. She seemed very eager to get you and me together."

"She was just trying to make me feel better since I was having a down day." He blurted out, not thinking.

Her face fell as she sat down. Steven almost felt bad for having to burst her bubble. However, it brightened up almost immediately, "Well, that's okay. I'm glad she got us together. She has good taste and I'm very happy she has you for a son. If she hadn't adopted you, I would never have met you! We should call and tell her the happy news!" She exclaimed smiling, thrusting her hind paws at his to play some 'footsie' with him.

Heart racing again for an out, knowing his resolve would break if she tempted him anymore like this, Steven set his utensil down beside his plate. "That's the thing, Courtney." His serious tone caught her attention as reclined back in her chair to eat. "I haven't seen her since Monday. She won't return my calls. She hadn't shown up to work at all yesterday. I think something is wrong."

"Oh…well, you were with me most of Tuesday on our date, so you can't blame her being missing for that long." She recapped for him.

Their date started off nice like any other. They had a nice lunch together at Misty's on the Vine, a very nice outdoor restaurant in the fifth canopy of the Rainforest District. It was right next to a zipline attraction, all the way down to the forest floor.

However, throughout the course of the day, things got progressively weird and her bits of craziness started to shine through to the point he didn't call her back after they parted. So his surprise at her sudden appearance the previous day and now waking up naked in bed with her this morning was more than warranted. In reality, all he truly wanted was some company during a day he felt miserable after leaving his mother like he did at the coffee shop.

Courtney seemed very concerned, raising a paw to her chest in sympathy. "Do you want to go out together and look for her?"

He shook his head quickly, "No, I've spent the last two days off work. I need to get back. She's a big girl and can take care of herself." He had to stifle a sniffle. "I have to check in with my job and see what I've missed."

"Alright." She bounced, stabbing her pancake and slicing off a piece to eat. "I'll stick around here and freshen the place up for us!" She giggled. "I always did want to be a housewife for someone!" She practically swooned at the thought.

Raising his upper lip in a cringe-worthy way, Steven remarked, "Right. Well, please try not to move too much of my stuff around please. I'd like everything the way it is now."

She waved a paw at him, "Oh, stop. You won't even know I've been here. It'll just look very clean! Go have fun at work. I'll be here when you get back. Besides…" She waggled her eyebrows at him, "I might have something fun for us to do tonight!"

Gritting his teeth and showing off his best smile, Steven divested himself from her invasive paws, snuggling and grasping at his inner thighs with increasing urgency. He grabbed his keys and nodded at her, "I'm sure it'll be great, Courtney! See you later."

"Don't worry, Steviepoo! I'll take care of your plate for you!" She serenaded.

He hastily exited his apartment and shut the door. The future outlook of his single life was looking bleak. He couldn't stand up to the torrential wave of bachelor destruction that was Courtney. What he needed was some reassurance and maybe some backup from his mom. Maybe he could convince her that Courtney was clearly not the girl for him and then she'd have to back down.

Maybe Murana would be back at her apartment now? It was worth a shot to check before heading into work. He should probably apologize for his words and actions this past Monday. He couldn't bear the thought of not being able to talk with her another day. He sighed deeply. He really was a momma's boy.

* * *

 _Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A  
_ _Thursday – 07:54 AM – Clear Skies / Variable Winds_

Steven did a few, light leg stretches outside Murana's apartment door while waiting for her, trying to relieve the perpetual soreness he felt. After a few moments, he knocked again. Still nothing. He dug around in his pockets and pulled out her key. Even though she had moved him out after Anthony demanded he get a place of his own, she still was thoughtful enough to have a key made for him to her place just in case he ever needed to come back.

Happy at this thought, he turned the key and opened the door, relishing in the grass carpeting between his toes as he flexed and moved them through the individual blades. Mom truly did have the best décor and taste in home decorating. He had heard she paid off the owner of the apartment suites to allow her to blanket her flooring with this luxurious grass. With an internal irrigation and pesticide system built into the floor, it was kept bug free and always freshly green.

"Hello?" Steven called out into the silence.

Shutting the door behind him, he looked around the empty house. It seemed almost untouched since he last left it weeks ago. Mother was a creature of habit and did not like too change around her apartment much. He wandered the den and eating area, looking around for any signs of life. Even their neighbor's glass doorway in the wall was securely shut. It seemed nobody was home at all.

Heading further into her bedroom, Steven spied Murana's CEO blouse and skirt draped over the bed. He tilted his head. That was odd. She wouldn't just leave things out so haphazardly like that, especially in the middle of the day. If she wasn't in her uniform for work, was she out and about in her vigilante suit? Why now? He knew she only operated at night predominantly.

Missing his mom something fierce and regretting cutting her off completely after she took his note, he sprawled out on the bed. He buried his face into her clothes, breathing in deeply the scent of her still lingering on the fabrics.

He always loved her scent. He couldn't get enough of it. It was the first smell he could remember after being rescued. After spending years in the musk mill with nothing but the reeking odor of musk from the multitude of other mammals, the intoxicating aroma of her was like the fresh breeze of freedom. He owed his life to her.

"Still sniffing your momma's clothes, eh?" A suave voice echoed from the doorway.

Steven nearly jolted out of the bed, his tail rigid and standing straight up. "Zoey!" He gasped, his flight or fight response still surging through his veins.

Zoey Javan was the adorable minx of a mongoose that lived literally within the walls of Murana's apartment. Given the nature of smaller mammals living alongside larger ones in the Red Lion Suites, the building contractors had to make the most use out of the available space in the structure. So, sometimes mammals had to co-exist as neighbors. Thankfully, Murana and Zoey were longtime friends and usually got along well together.

"It's more the paws specifically," Steven tried to correct, "but there isn't any sort of crime for enjoying a particular smell."

With arms crossed and stark naked, she shrugged, looking completely blasé about the whole affair, "Hey, it's none of my business what sorts of kinks you are into. I'm hardly the one to judge." She smirked at him.

"It's not a kink!" Steven retorted, feeling a bit offended. "It's just…I have sappy attachment to my mom's scent. That's all."

"I'm sure…" She leered, hopping down the single step to the grass carpeting of the bedroom, wiggling her toes lewdly. "Just as sentimental as my paws when last you smelled them."

Steven gulped hard at this. It was no secret to those who knew him that Steven had a particular olfactory fetish where he was keenly interested in hind paws. The mere smell of them literally brought euphoria to him. When he was still living under Murana's roof as her adopted son, their neighbor, Zoey, discovered this peculiar trait and used it to great advantage not long after his 18th birthday.

"Hey…um, that's not what I came here for though." Steven slipped off the edge of the bed, taking a few steps back.

The tawny mongoose just kept advancing, her hips swaying seductively. "I'm almost hurt that you didn't come back to see me. You seemed quite smitten with my paws. If those aren't the reason, then what did you come here for?"

Feeling a numbing burn shooting up and down his limbs, Steven said with dry throat, "Ah…I'm actually here looking for my mom. Have you seen her?"

She shook her head, "I'm afraid not, but do you know who I haven't seen in a long while? My little skunkbutt!"

As much as he was excited for what he knew Zoey had in store for them both, Steven also knew he needed to find some way to defuse the situation so he could focus on his search for Murana. He and Zoey had a long, secret tryst that spanned from the time he was of age to when he finally moved out of the apartment on his own. She had apparently been keeping an eye on him for a long while and dutifully waited out the years until he was legal before giving him one of the best birthday presents he had ever received.

She sniffed a little, crinkling her nose. "Oh my…and is that another female's scent I smell on you? You have been getting around since you last left me! To think I caused this innocent flower to fall from grace." Her eyes were alight with passionate fire. "Guess it's time to see how much he's learned!"

Steven went to put his paws up, trying to ward Zoey off as she surged in to give him a big hug. "Wait, I haven't learned that m-"

He was already lost in a daze. The mongoose had her limbs wrapped around him, tail curled tightly around his. One of her legs already raised high with hind paw cradling his face, the inebriating smell of them making him lose all sense of reality. He didn't even realize he was being gently lowered to the ground as she planted kisses all over his face. The out-of-body experience of an older, more experienced female taking care of him was like rapture.

Sometimes Steven hated how much he loved to smell things, how much it made him weak in the knees to the point of complete submission. Yet he just couldn't help himself when a pleasing aroma was brought before his nose. It didn't help that every female he knew that was interested in him discovered this fact quite quickly.

Like most of the previous night with Courtney, he was in bliss. He saw the motion of his body and arms, yet he didn't quite connect that it was him that was moving them. Everything seemed to happen in a trance as he completed every task Zoey had set out for him to do. He didn't even have time to think about any guilty feelings for cheating on Courtney – in fact, he wasn't even sure it could be called that since they weren't officially an item. Just something Courtney forced upon him. He really needed a backbone when it came to females.

He hadn't even realized she was already undoing the button of his shorts, pulling them off with purpose. He just laid his head back and relaxed, turning over to look at the other side of the room when something unusual piqued his interest. Murana's eye mask was just lying on the floor of her closet in plain view for all to see.

Mother was never this careless in hiding away her outfit from Anthony. The mere fact it was visible for anyone who was looking for it caused alarm bells to sound in his head. Suddenly, the hazy fog that covered his brain lifted and he immediately pushed Zoey off of him, swiftly getting up and pulling back up his shorts.

"Hey!" She cried out, affronted. "What the hell?" Her tail was swishing angrily as she reached out to bring him back down to finish what she had started. "Don't you like us doing this anymore?"

"I do." He admitted. It was very pleasing, but he had other priorities right now. "But I'm still worried about mom. Look." He walked over and picked up the mask.

She stared blankly at it, blinking. "Okay, so what?"

He flushed as he realized something, "Oh, you probably don't know anything about this do you?"

Still on the floor, she shifted onto her rump as she leaned back on her arms. "You mean the outfit she wears when she goes out on the town late at night to murder people by burning them alive? Yeah, I know nothing about that at all."

Steven gave her a look, "Well yeah, that." Guess she did know about mom's double life. "Point is, she's very careful about hiding this from Anthony…unless he knows too?"

Zoey rolled her eyes at him, "Highly doubtful. Both of us would have heard about it long before now. Can we get back to us now?" She grinned, spreading her legs in invitation.

He shook his head, looking up towards the slide-away panel in the ceiling, it looked slightly ajar. "No, I think something is seriously wrong here."

He scrambled up the racks of clothes as Zoey sighed, realizing she wasn't going to get anything out of the skunk. Reaching the top of the upper shelf, Steven reached out and pushed aside the panel and saw a sealed baggy that had not been fully closed. The reeking stench of his musk emanated from the opening, clearly drenched in what looked to be Murana's folded vigilante suit. Plopping down lightly to the ground with the bag, he walked over to Zoey who had already put on her sweatpants and was pushing her head through a blue tank top.

"When was the last time you saw my mother?" Steven asked urgently.

Zoey stared at the bagged suit, "Probably Tuesday morning. She and Anthony had quite a row that day. About you, actually. I wouldn't be surprised if she just kicked him out for good this time. Both left in a big huff and I've honestly not seen her since."

His breathing began to get fast and panicky. "She's not been at home. She's left this out in her closet." He held up the bag. "She hasn't been seen at work and now there is a cop on her tail asking questions about her."

"A cop?" Zoey's ears popped up. "You think she was picked up?"

He looked down and frowned at the mask. "No, I don't think so. He seemed to not really have made any connection to her and the Dark Flame Wolf when I talked to him yesterday."

Zoey thought on it a few moments, tapping her chin. "That is indeed weird." Shaking her head to clear her mind, she hopped on the bed and turned on the news. She much preferred the big screen Murana had compared to her dainty one tucked away in her cramped apartment. After a few moments, she tapped him on his shoulder, "Hey, Steven? You might want to take a look at this."

He turned around at her insistence and saw live helicopter footage of a downed aircraft with dirigible qualities in what looked like a bird motif. It had crash landed in the vast expanse of the Sahara Square desert, and many cop and news reporting cars were gathered at a healthy two mile distance as it seemed a very malevolent field of electricity was blocking any closer access to the aircraft.

"You think Murana would know anything about this?" Zoey inquired, pointing at the screen.

"I don't know anything about this…" Steven stood agape. He had never seen anything like that in his life. "But, I bet Murana might be out there right now checking it out. I mean…I would. It's a fantastic story." His eyes bulged. "Wait a minute. It is a fantastic story! I should be out there reporting on it!"

He scanned the screen and tried to identify the vehicles surrounding the crash site, he had yet to see one for ZNN. That would mean he could be first on scene! After a tap on his shoulder, he turned to Zoey. "So you going there, then?" She asked with a yearning look.

He nodded resolutely. "I have to. Not only is it my job, but maybe I can find mom there too. It's a long shot, but I don't think she'd let something this big go uninvestigated."

Smiling forlornly, she bowed her head. "Alright, Steven. Go find your mom. We can catch up later."

He hesitated a brief moment before moving in to hug Zoey, which caused her eyes to shoot open in surprise. "Thanks, Zoey. You've been a good friend to me."

She beamed and patted him on the back before parting and keeping a paw on each of his shoulders. "And you've been a fantastic lover. Thanks for letting me pop you."

He blushed furiously at this. "Y-yeah…It was fun."

"Next time then?" She smirked.

Steven thought about it a moment before winking at her, "We'll see, 'Zoey Toey' can wait for now." She giggled at his nickname for her.

Giving her a peck on the cheek, he bounded off through the living den and out the door. Hearing the door slam shut behind him, Zoey sighed heavily. She truly did love that little guy. Sliding off Murana's bed, she picked up the discarded bag and stuffed the eye mask into it. Zipping it up securely this time, she took the time to hide it back up into the compartment space as a gesture of good will towards her neighbor.

* * *

 _Sahara Square – Northern Sand Dunes – Three Miles Northwest of the Oasis Hotel & Casino  
_ _Thursday – 10:02 AM – Sporadic Clouds / Heavy Winds_

The entire air was filled with the hum of arcing energy. It was not hard to notice the bubble of electric currents encasing the strange ship that fell from the sky in the early morning hours that day. It was large enough to be seen several miles away and of course all the tenants of the upper floors of the Oasis had fantastic views of the downed aircraft. Each patron was taking millions of pictures with their phones, each and every one going viral. Probably everyone in Zootopia knew about this mysterious ship by now.

Steven was biting his nails as he quickly paid off the bus driver for the fare and leaped out of the carriage onto the dusty asphalt. He had to expeditiously take public transportation routes that wove back through to his house where Courtney was thankfully not present so he could grab his backpack and video recording equipment. Charting a course to get to Sahara Square quickly, he finally made it within an hour's time.

Adjusting the brim of his ZNN cap on his head, Steven nearly skipped down the road to the cluster of vans and cop vehicles huddled at one end of the freeway. There was still no ZNN news van in sight. What the heck was Lagopus doing? All the other news agencies would be getting the drop on this before they would! Shaking his head at the incompetence of his superiors, he whipped out his camcorder and shoved a paw through the holding strap and aimed it directly at the crash site.

Attaching a wired microphone to his shirt collar, he began filming. "Hello, Zootopia! This is Steven Stinkman here, reporting live from Sahara Square at what looks to be a crash site for a very archaic airship. That's right folks! This is no blimp or even a plane that many are used to seeing. This is, in fact, a legitimate airship, complete with ballast balloons and propellers. It truly looks like something out of history!" His voice was both evened and excited.

He shifted his camera over to where the cops were congregating just ahead of the news vehicles. "And here we have Zootopia's finest out here this morning cordoning off the site. Not like we need any incentive with that field of electricity blocking anyone getting to the downed airship." Steven faltered a bit as he saw through his lens the recognizable visage of his 'dad', Anthony Wolford, barking orders to a few other officers.

"Grizzoli, I need you to trace the cordon as far north as the barrier wall to the west. Fangmeyer, I need you to do the same to the east. We do not want any civilians breaching this perimeter until we can figure out what we're dealing with." He turned to the side and got the attention of another, smaller colleague. "Swinton, I need you to coordinate with Precinct 3 here in Sahara Square and request additional assistance in containing this situation."

Turning the camera off, Steven tucked it back away into his pack and walked up to Anthony. "I see you're wearing your new rank well." Steven noticed, seeing the new shiny bars on his lapel.

Sniffing with irritation and turning to look down at Steven, Anthony's face contorted into a grimace, "What do you want, rat?"

"Is that any way to speak to your son?" Steven snarked, folding his arms and glaring at the wolf who married his mom.

"You're only my son because Murana adopted you into the family long before I came along. If I had a say, you wouldn't even be within thirty feet of my family." He hissed, trying to keep his voice down from being overhead by his partners.

"Wow. No wonder she kicked you out of our home the other day. With an attitude like that, I wouldn't want you in my house either!" Steven accused loudly, enough to earn several stares from other officers.

Sensing the inquisitive glances of his colleagues at the altercation, Anthony gripped Steven's arm a bit roughly and drew him off to the side out of earshot of most of the others. He leaned low to be on eye level with the diminutive skunk, "Why are you here? What do you want? Come to gloat? It's because of you that Murana and I are having troubles!"

Feeling strangely bold despite this menacing wolf just inches from his face, Steven riposted, "Funny, it's because of you that Murana and I are having troubles. It all started when you convinced her to kick me out, and now she's run away most likely because of your bad attitude."

Anthony blinked, not comprehending what Steven said. "What?" His snout scrunched up trying to deduce the statement. "Murana ran away?"

"Yeah, apparently Zoey hasn't seen her since you two had a big fight. I was just at her apartment. I thought for sure you would have come groveling back by now and seen her before I visited." Steven susurrated.

"I have a bit more respect for myself than she does to be doing that." He snapped.

"What a sad person you are. She loved you and you couldn't see that even after you left. No wonder she chose me over you when it finally came down to it. Good to hear that mom defends me even when I'm not around." Steven finished with finality.

It took all of Anthony's willpower not to reach out and strangle this smug little skunk to death. He fingers were flexing and his claws were sharp. Gnashing his teeth, he tried to control his temper, "So have you just come here to rub my failures in my face or did you want to tell me more about the fact Murana is missing?"

"Well, I don't really know about missing just yet. I know she hasn't been seen in about a day or so, at least not by me." Steven replied, thoughtfully going over the last few days.

"Did you check at her work? Sometimes she gets absorbed in her job so much that she forgets to come home." Anthony offered, the current wave of jealousy over Steven passing.

"Of course I did. I checked early yesterday morning when I…" He caught himself. Steven didn't really want to say exactly what he was upset with Murana about. Anthony still had no clue about his wife being a vigilante-by-night. "When I stopped by to ask her for something at the bank. Her new secretary didn't really give me any positive answers as to her whereabouts."

"Hmm, that is a bit worrying. Especially since she has not returned any of my calls." Anthony reasoned, looking troubled.

"So you did come groveling back and called her." Steven cracked a smile.

"Stop it!" Anthony glared.

"Excuse me, I know you." A voice called out from the side.

Both turned to see a rabbit and wildebeest in uniform approaching. The rabbit was obviously Judy Hopps, the sole bunny cop in the entire force. Even Steven was aware of who she was just by word of mouth alone. The other made him groan, however. It was the same wildebeest that came to his house yesterday to question him on his musk mill experience and his mother. He was making a direct beeline for him.

"Ugh, what do you want? I've told you everything I know." Steven wailed, taking a few steps back instinctively to hide behind the larger frame of Anthony.

"You two have met?" Anthony remarked, surprised.

"Yes." Ralph replied abruptly for Steven. "I was just doing some off duty investigation that led me to the doorstep of Mr. Stinkman here, which led me on the trail of his mother, Mrs. Wolford."

"Off duty investigation? This is highly irregular…wait." Anthony's brain caught up with the conversation. There were too many things happening at once here. "Why are you after my wife?"

Ralph grunted as Judy elbowed him in the ribs, electing him to respond before this conversation spiraled into a direction nobody wanted. "What Officer Grayz is saying is that Mrs. Wolford's name came up during the investigation of a prior case that Mr. Stinkman was involved in."

"Although I wouldn't be surprised Steven would be involved with anything relating to Murana, I don't understand why you two would be on it." Anthony gave a withering stare at Steven, who remained oblivious to it, his eyes only on the wildebeest.

"Wait, your son is Steven here?" Ralph finally connected the dots, his hoof pointing at the skunk.

"Not by choice." Anthony growled, crossing his arms. "That still doesn't answer my question."

"Well, we believe your wife might have been instrumental in a specific case over a decade ago and Grayz here would have liked to speak with her about it to get some more information regarding those who were responsible for the crime." Judy explained.

"So you're investigating a cold case." Anthony stated flatly. "That's dumb. There is a reason they are called cold cases. They should be left in the past, where they belong."

"Not when it involves the Dark Flame Wolf." Ralph interjected.

Anthony scoffed, "Now the Dark Flame Wolf is involved in a case with my wife and estranged son?" This jab at his character drew a glower from Steven. "What other crazy nonsense are you going to be telling me next, Grayz? If you don't mind," He indicated the big aircraft in clear view of them all, "I have a potential situation that could turn serious at any moment and need to devote my time to this."

"That's the reason I came to your son in the first place. I was trying to track down your wife to ask her some questions and the only person remotely available that was connected to her in some way was Mr. Stinkman here." Ralph stepped to the side to get a better view of the skunk. "I didn't actually make the connection she was your wife until late last night."

"I told you all I know, ok?" Steven shouted back, feeling a bit insecure with both the prying cop and the unlikeable father-in-law right beside him. If this continued any further, he might go into a panic attack and need his inhaler to calm down.

"You couldn't find her either?" Anthony probed, queuing off the fact that here was yet another person who couldn't track down his wife. If it was Steven, that was one matter, but here was a fellow colleague who also couldn't find Murana. Now it was getting downright concerning.

Ralph bowed his head in the affirmative, "Seeing you here with Steven, I had hoped you would know where she was, for sure."

Anthony looked away a bit embarrassed, "We…had a fight the other day. I actually haven't spoken to her since."

"If you don't mind me asking," Judy offered, "What was the fight about? Maybe that could help tell us where she might have gone off to?"

Anthony pinched the bridge of his snout as he considered his options. On one hand, he had a full scale operation here to attend to in Sahara Square, on the other, he had his wife to worry about.

He looked at her, "It was about…having children. She had mentioned to me the other day that she couldn't have any, so she was looking at local orphanages for replacements now that Steven was moved out. I didn't really like that, since I wanted a wolf cub of my own with her. So hearing about this from her really set me off."

Judy's ears dropped at this, clutching her chest with a paw. "I'm sorry to hear that, Wolford." She almost wanted to reach out and put a paw on his arm, but he was a bit too tall for that and she doubted he'd appreciate it much. "It must have been quite a blow to you."

He looked balefully behind him at Steven, who was still placing the wolf between him and Ralph. "It was, Hopps, it was"

"Did you say local orphanages?" Ralph grilled, not really privy to the entire emotional quagmire that was unfolding before his eyes.

"Yeah, she mentioned she had found some raccoon somewhere and wanted him as a second son." He responded without much emotion. He was just drained already of this conversation and just wanted to get back to his job.

"I'm going to get a brother?" Steven asked with wide eyes.

"Through no effort on my part." Anthony snarked.

Ignoring the family squabble, even Judy picked up on what Ralph was hinting at. "She didn't happen to tell you what orphanage she went to, did she?" She put on her best smile.

"Yeah, she did. Some Tail Hollow place down in Happy Town." He sniffed, his attention returning to the conversation. "I'm actually not really sure where it is."

"Not a happy part of town, that much I can assure you." All turned to see a red fox in uniform with a snazzy pair of aviator shades. Clopping alongside him was a rather irritated brown horse with outdated trousers and buttoned work shirt, complete with suspenders to keep his loose pants up.

"Nick! Detective Oates!" Judy beamed, feeling utterly star-struck at her favorite detective coming over to pay a personal visit to them out here in Sahara Square.

"Good to see you too, Carrots." Nick smiled as he took off his shades and clapped Ralph on the arm as best as he could reach. "What's up, buddy? Any luck finding the ghost of Dark Flame Wolf?"

Ralph shot an accusing look at Judy who just raised her paws up in supplication, "Hey, he's my partner and friend, I had to tell him what you were up to."

"Actually, I do have a few leads, just trying to see how they pan out." He drawled, not really happy about his business being so public within the police community.

"Anyway, thanks for the ride, Oats'n'Honey." Nick clicked his tongue, winking at the detective, who just snorted in disdain. "I got it from here."

"Good." Oates grumbled. "I have to get back to the station and deal with more nonsense with this Mr. Big fellow."

"Oh my, Mr. Big?" Nick feigned ignorance of the name. "Going after the big moneymakers, eh?"

"Hardly." Oates grumped. "Bogo thinks the latest bail posted for this lemming arrested earlier this week for assault and battery has something to do with Big's enterprises."

"That's a pretty big leap of logic." Ralph was stunned. He knew of the name, Mr. Big, but despite all the negative press attached to his moniker, there was very little attached to his name that could be proven. Much like the current case he was working on, he noted.

"Not as 'big' as you'd think." Judy said knowingly.

"So what are you all up to?" Oates asked the group, even though the question was clearly meant for Hopps.

"We were actually just discussing them leaving on some fool's errand about the Dark Flame Wolf so I can focus back on this crash here." Anthony roughly thrusted his paws towards the obvious field of death before them.

"Ah, Dark Flame Wolf. Been tracking her for quite a while. Nothing tangible has come up, sadly." Oates shook his head, seemingly not unhappy about the issue.

"Just as fruitless as that Impaler case you keep saying you'll solve any week now, huh?" Nick ribbed, clearly having fun with his equine escort.

"I'll have you know, we are dealing with a master criminal here! He is very hard to pin down and leaves very little evidence for us to track!" Oates brayed, pointing a hoof at Nick.

"Let's all calm down now!" Judy stepped in, holding paws out for peace between the multiple parties. "It's clear there are several matters here that need to be addressed. For one, we need someone to stay behind and take care of the downed aircraft over there, however Anthony and Steven are both worried for Mrs. Wolford and her whereabouts. So, how about this: Nick and I will assist the situation here while Anthony and Steven go investigate what happened to Mrs. Wolford. Does that sound good?"

"I'd like to join that search, if that's alright?" Ralph interposed.

"I don't think the crew would take a fox and bunny seriously unless a more reputable detective was on the scene with you to back up your authority." Oates reminded.

"Excuse me? Hold your horses, Mr. Fruity Oates. I do believe Officer Hopps has more than proven herself to the others that she can handle this." Nick defended her, seriously upset with the horse's tone.

"True." Anthony admitted, stepping in and placing a paw on Nick's shoulder. "But Oates is right. Neither of you are a sergeant like me or a detective like him. He'd need to accompany you if I were to leave to go find my wife."

"Reality is cruel." Nick huffed, folding his arms and looking down angrily at a patch of sand on the road.

"Maybe one day we'll be detectives ourselves, ok, Nick?" Judy proposed, giving his arm a little squeeze. She returned her attention back to Anthony, "So, do you want to go find your wife while we take care of things here?"

Anthony looked from Ralph, to Steven and back to Judy again. "I'd need to get clearance from Chief Bogo before I go." He said drearily.

"Nonsense!" Oates burst out unperturbed. "Let me handle Bogo. You go find your wife. Officer Hopps and I have this all in hand."

"Officer Wilde, too." Nick raised his paw to remind Oates he was still here.

"Err…of course." Oates conceded, looking put off.

All eyes turned to Anthony, the one to make the call. Steven could tell he was struggling hard on deciding what he should do next. He was just promoted to sergeant and had a responsibility to uphold his new position and prove himself worthy of the task, but he could also see in Anthony the turmoil of his potentially missing wife. The fact they did not end on good terms when he saw her last did not bode well for her current whereabouts.

"You do still love mom, don't you?" Steven asked.

That did it. With a determined look, Anthony brought up the walkie-talkie to his muzzle, "All units, all units. This is Sergeant Wolford. I am being reassigned, Detective Oates will be managing the situation here with the assistance of Officer Hopps and Wilde. Please refer to him for anything further." With that he clicked off and handed the device to Oates. "Grizzoli and Fangmeyer are extending the cordon further north while Swinton is requesting more help from Precinct 3. You got everything from here?"

"Of course. Wasn't really looking forward to diving deep into this Mr. Big thing. Don't run the race if you don't have the nerve sort of thing." He grinned at his own humor, everyone else just blinked at him. "Either way, I can handle this. Come on, Officer Hopps…and, um, Wilde." He added as an afterthought.

"Good luck!" Judy whispered to Ralph before heading off with the other two.

"So what was the name of that orphanage she said she found that raccoon in?" Ralph asked.

"Tail Hollow." Steven piped up, reading off the copious notes he had been taking on his notepad during that whole conversation. "In Happy Town."

"I do believe I saw your wife this past Monday there." Ralph confirmed.

Anthony's eyes widened, "You were there? Why?"

Ralph shifted a bit, "For personal reasons of my own, but I did recognize her earrings from that day."

"Wait, what?" Both Anthony and Steven said in unison.

Ralph stuttered slightly, "W-well, as I said before, I was investigating a musk mill incident which led me to your son, Steven. He confirmed a few things for me to include a present he gave her of a pair of earrings that matched the one found at a crime scene." He pulled out a small evidence baggy with the pine tree earring visible to everyone.

"What are you trying to say?" Anthony narrowed his eyes.

"I think what Ralph is trying to say," Steven stepped in, getting between the two, "Was that Tail Hollow might be a good place to start looking for her since she was last seen there by any one of us." He looked at Ralph meaningfully, almost as if to will him to keep his mouth shut on what he most likely suspected of his mother.

Anthony regarded the two suspiciously before waggling a finger at Steven, "Fine, but one or preferably both of you better start telling me what's going on when we get there. I feel like I'm being left in the dark and I don't like it one bit! Come on, we'll get in my car and I'll drive." He waved them to follow as he stomped off towards his vehicle.

Steven breathed a sigh of relief. He had no idea how much Ralph knew at this point about Murana, but it was probably already a lot more than what Anthony knew. He had no idea how Anthony would react if he found out his wife was the Dark Flame Wolf. To make matters more complicated, Steven was sure Ralph was probably questioning Anthony and wondering how much he knew or if he was a corrupt cop covering up for his wife's activities. This was going to be a fun trip to Tail Hollow, that much was for sure, Steven gathered.

* * *

 _Coordinating heavily with Berserker88 since this Steven Stinkman was his character, I had a lot of fun formulating and creating this chapter. Like I did with day 3, I figured it was nice to have yet another change of pace and focus all of day 4 on another character - one we only had a few scenes with already, but was intricately involved in all things Murana. Who better to track for the next few chapters than her own son, Steven? I knew I needed to account for his absence the last few days and progress the story arc that involved Courtney while giving out some much needed fleshing out to her character. I also added a few tidbits of world building with regards to skunks that'll come into play as well. It was also fun to have Zoey return here in an unexpected capacity of a sexy minx that deflowered our fair Steven. She was also used as a means to an end to get Steven on the path to run headlong into his father and Ralph once more which would kickstart the next chapter into high gear. The scene with the multitude of characters talking was both difficult, yet rewarding to write as I let the characters dictate the flow of how the group would ultimately get to Tail Hollow. A well conceptualized chapter that I'm very proud of that brings in so many OCs and story elements together in a satisfying way._


	12. Thursday - Scents of the Past - Aftrnoon

_Downtown – Tail Hollow Orphanage – Happytown District – Corner of Deluge Ave and 34th St._  
 _Thursday – 12:11 PM – Sporadic Clouds / Moderate Winds w/Occasional Gusts_

It was a complete mess. Steven had tried to forget his time living here in Happytown. Before Murana was a CEO of Lemming Bros. Bank, she had a small flat here in this derelict part of Zootopia. The steam plumes from various chimneys spired higher into the sky, giving the entire place a rancid odor that was stinging to the nose. The usual assortment of bums and hobos littered the streets as refuse was strewn about the walkways. It hadn't changed much in the years since he and Murana moved to central downtown.

They could see the disaster long before they reached it. There were multiple chunks of brick and mortar scattered across the road to the point that Anthony could drive no further and had to park a bit further out so they could all walk to the orphanage. They had to avoid taking shortcuts through the alleys to their destination. Even as a small group armed with guns, there were still places in Zootopia where it was not wise to tread through.

The sight of the building brought a small gasp from Ralph, who had been here recently. The entire upper floor and roof was completely blown off. Part of the first and second floors and all of the third was open to the elements. Sprawled out in front of the main entrance were piles of boards, broken bed mattresses and dresser frames. It seemed they were dumping all the unusable furniture and structure support out by the curb for Thursday trash pickup.

"This is plain awful." Ralph remarked, his mouth agape at the state of Tail Hollow. "I was just here on Monday and it was perfectly fine."

All were curious as to what happened here. Gingerly stepping over the debris, they proceeded through the front entrance, its door hanging half off its hinges. Inside wasn't much better. There were claw marks along various walls, floors and stair railings. Several blood stains marked the places where bodies were placed, all gone now, supposedly to the morgue. The biggest thing all noticed was the pervasive silence within the orphanage.

Anthony spotted a small red panda dressed up in a habit coming out of a side doorway, carrying what looked to be a garbage bag. She hadn't noticed them yet. "Excuse me, ma'am. Can you please tell me what happened here? I'm Officer Wolford from the ZPD." He flashed his badge just to make sure she understood his intentions.

The poor thing literally jumped out of her skin at his introduction, immediately dropping the bag. She looked ready to flee, but the sight of the bronze badge gave her pause. "Where were you…?" She warbled miserably, visibly shaking.

"Pardon?" Ralph was confused, and it seemed he wasn't alone.

"We were attacked by ruthless pirates. Where were you?!" The panda began at a fast clip, her voice getting faster and more pitched as she went along. "We tried to call you again and again, but we got nothing but a dead tone. They killed Matron…they killed many others. The children! They took the children!" She was near hysterical, as if reliving the events all over again.

"Pirates? What in blazes does that mean? You mean like looters?" Anthony offered.

Steven came up to the red panda and put an arm around her, her body reacting positively to his touch. She turned to look at him as he calmed her, "It's okay now, the police are here and we just want to know what happened." Seeing the panda nod her head, Steven took her to sit down on a nearby pile of boards that could best be used now as a bench. "So can you tell us what happened here?"

A bit more relaxed now that a smaller mammal was interrogating her, she began explaining, oblivious to the fact Steven had reached around into his backpack and flipped the record button on his camera.

"It was pirates. Predators like I've never seen around here before." She still had wide eyes as she was recounting.

"Excuse me, ma'am." Ralph put a hoof out to stop her. "Can you please tell us your name and what you do here?"

Staring up at the wildebeest in casual attire, the panda was a bit put off. The only one of the three who even remotely looked like a cop was the wolf and she was a bit spooked to be talking to him. "My name is Claire Fulgens. I used to work under the Matron here caring for the children before she…was killed."

"Were any of the children hurt?" Ralph inquired, feeling apprehensive about the answer.

"Did you get a good look at the killers?" Anthony grilled, eyes intense.

"Please guys, one at a time." Steven put out a paw to stop the two cops. He could see that Claire was getting agitated again by being questioned so quickly. It was clear that even over a day since the incident, she was still in shock. "Let her speak in her own time." He turned to her and gave a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. "Can you please answer the questions as you feel you are able to?"

She nodded her head a bit more forcefully than intended, "A few were murdered on the spot! They rest were roughed up a bit, but it seemed like they were what they wanted."

"That's horrible!" Ralph gawked.

"I don't understand. What do you mean, what they wanted?" Anthony was flummoxed. He still didn't really have any idea what these creeps would want with an orphanage.

Her big eyes stared up at the larger wolf, her entire frame still shivering from the memory. "They only came for the children. They rounded them up, tied them together and lifted them into the sky into their demon ship. Any caretakers that got in their way were killed…like Matron." She began to sob, stuffing her paws into her face as she let it out.

"That's terrible." Steven's jaw dropped.

It was feeling all too eerie to him. He remembered when he was kidnapped, taken to a musk mill to be drained weekly and to be sold to the highest bidder. To rot in cages until the next time he was called to produce more musk. He wondered if the raccoon boy that Murana was looking to adopt was here and one of the ones that got taken away. What horrible fates were they experiencing right now?

"Did they take all the kids?" Steven asked, not even concerned about the story for ZNN anymore.

"No." She sniffled, trying to dry her eyes on her sleeve. "They left the older ones, those just hitting puberty. They only wanted the younger cubs. None of the adults were taken or killed if they stayed out of the way."

"Ma'am, can you tell us what they looked like?" Ralph pressed, a bit more gently than Anthony did earlier.

"Like pirates. Like the ones you used to see on those old television shows when we were kids. Dressed up to the nines with buttoned fronts and big brimmed hats, each carrying swords at their hips or muskets in their hands." Claire revealed.

All simply stared at her, it seemed a bit too outlandish of a story. "And these pirates…" Anthony was thinking it over as he spoke, "They did this to the roof of the place? How?" He pointed up at the open sky above.

Claire shivered and huddled close to the skunk, who only hugged her tighter. With a deep breath and more reassuring pats from Steven, she continued, "I don't know…there was a huge boom and the entire building shook hard. Then my fur began to stand on end as lightning blew the entire roof off. Then they descended and started grabbing the kids one by one. A wolf showed up soon after and tried to fight them, but was also taken."

"A wolf, you say?" Ralph was strongly attentive at this very moment.

"What did she look like?" Anthony barked, causing Claire to recoil a bit. He checked himself, "I'm sorry, did you get a look at what she was wearing?"

"All red…she had a mask on and was taking down pirates left and right, but was stopped by a fox." Her lower lip quivered, but her speech was steady now, as if she wanted to get this horrific experience out in the open and be done with it.

"The Dark Flame Wolf…" Ralph mused, rubbing his chin. Steven tensed up at this, but did nothing to betray his inner turmoil at knowing that his mom might have been kidnapped right alongside the children.

"You said a fox took her away? Why her and not any of the other adults when all they were after were the cubs?" Anthony was getting more frustrated by the minute. None of this was making any sense.

"I'm sorry, I really don't know. It seemed they knew each other and she just…gave up fighting and they took her away." She turned her head into Steven and just buried it into his chest, wanting nothing more than to just escape from it all. Steven just held her tight.

"I guess you won't mind if we look around." Anthony informed, sensing that they would get nothing further from the panda.

He and Ralph began rummaging around the place, lightly stepping over the shredded beams that fell from the ceiling, crushing the primary staircase up to the second floor. There were more blood stains here and there with scraps of torn clothing and what looked like some remnants of metal. Anthony whistled for Ralph to come over and take a look.

"Do you recognize any of this?" Anthony held up a small kunai and what looked to be a small grappling claw. He brought it close to sniff it, flinching back suddenly. "Ugh, smells like skunk and…" He grimaced, but brought his nose closer to take another whiff. "And…Murana?"

Steven was rooted to the spot, and not only because the red panda had fallen asleep on him from pure exhaustion. His ears flicked over to the conversation as Ralph expounded, "That…corroborates with the evidence I've gathered regarding the Dark Flame Wolf." Ralph paused briefly, unsure if he should press on with his final thought. "She is Murana Wolford." He said with some finality.

Anthony stayed kneeling on one knee as he held the cool metal in his paw. He didn't even bother to look up at the wildebeest standing right beside him. He was stock still for what seemed like hours. At length, he finally spoke in a whisper, "What is the meaning of this?"

"I don't understand." Ralph truly didn't. He took a step back at the menacing tone of Anthony.

The wolf rose up to come to eye level with the wildebeest. "Are you accusing my wife of being a mass murderer?" His grip was so tight on the kunai in his paws that a small trickle of blood began beading along the edge of it.

"You mean you didn't know?" Steven's insides went into a somersault as the words left his mouth almost unbidden. He needed to negate the situation now. Any further and he could see a fight erupting between the two cops. Both turned bewildered at Steven, who gulped heavily at their penetrating gazes, each demanding answers. "Yeah, my mom is the Dark Flame Wolf. What of it? I wasn't about to let you," He pointed at Anthony, "Arrest and lock away the one person in my entire life that means the world to me. She's done far more than you know."

"Is this a joke?" Anthony scoffed, looking incredulously at Steven. "Are you just agreeing with Grayz just to piss me off because you hate me?"

"I never really hated you." Steven's face drooped. "I just hated the fact you never liked me and convinced Murana to have me move out. I only wanted to stay with you guys and be a real family."

"And I wanted a son to call my own. A cub of my own blood." Anthony fired back.

"You did have a son to call your own, you just rejected him!" Steven gently set Claire down, who was now stirring from the altercation and stood up to Anthony. "Don't get angry at me because she's unable to have kids. Yeah, I knew that long before you did." He responded to a look from Anthony. "I knew a lot of things about her, because she loves and trusts me. She might love you, but it is quite clear she doesn't fully trust you. Would you trust your cop husband knowing you are a vigilante dealing lethal judgment on the streets?"

"And you condone this sort of behavior out of your mother?" Ralph stepped in. He was a bit confused as to where Steven stood with his mother.

"What?" He turned and raised his brow in surprise. "No! I only found out what she truly did about a week ago! Why would I be okay with my mom killing people? But it's not like I could stop her if I tried." He glanced back to Anthony, "You know how stubborn she is. It didn't really matter what I said to her, she continued to do what she wanted anyway. It was the reason I left her this week, I gave her an ultimatum to not kill another person and yet she went and did it regardless of my feelings. I am upset. I am hurt. But most of all, I am ashamed to say that the person I most love is the one who has killed so many."

"So she is a villain…" Ralph surmised.

"Don't talk about my wife like that!" Anthony snarled.

"You defend her? Despite all she's done?" Ralph accused.

"No! I'm no crooked cop!" Anthony swiped the air with his paw, furious at his integrity being called out by some greenhorn from the burrows. "This is a lot to process right now. I still don't believe she's the Dark Flame Wolf…I would have known or sensed it."

"Clearly you didn't." Ralph pointed out.

"So, what now?" Steven asked, quickly changing tack to avoid Anthony rounding on Ralph for that comment. He truly didn't know where they should go from here. He just knew he needed to calm down. Reaching into his pocket, he took out his inhaler and gave it a huge puff to clear his nerves and his lungs.

Anthony looked down at his paws, still holding the weapon evidence. "We take these back to the lab at ZPD and have them analyzed. We'll go from there depending on what we find." He seemed to be numb at this point, shutting off all emotion just to get the job done.

"Given what I did all yesterday, I'm a bit too invested to let this go. I'm coming with you." Ralph insisted.

"Fine, whatever. Just stay out of my way." Wolford really did not care for this newbie.

Steven knelt down next to Claire as the other two headed out back to the cruiser. "You stay safe. I got a few buddies I can call on to help clean up this mess. They should be here later today to help." He squeezed her shoulder one last time as she mouthed her thanks to him. With a beaming smile, he rose up and trailed after the other two.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – Zootopia Police Department – Off Freedom Circle Across from City Hall_  
 _Thursday – 3:03 PM – Sporadic Clouds / Variable Winds_

"So you want me to distract Chief Buffalo Butt long enough for you to check in with the lab and investigate these weapons you found at some orphanage in the hopes they'll lead you to the Dark Flame Wolf? Am I getting it about right?" Nick clarified, arms crossed wearing a suspicious look aimed directly at Ralph.

"Please be more respectful of our chief!" Ralph gawked at the audacity of this fox.

"He is respectful." Anthony pointed out. "It's just Wilde's way."

Ralph stared at them for a few moments before explaining, "It's to help find Wolford's wife. We won't be too long."

Nick glanced over at Steven, who was standing close and a bit behind Anthony, looking around the ZPD. It was evident this was his first time being in the place. "He's actually not supposed to be in there with you two." He bowed his head in the direction of the skunk.

"Oh, now you're a stickler for protocol, Wilde?" Anthony snorted. "He's fine, I'll take responsibility for him. How goes the situation out in Sahara?"

"Well, we actually just got back about a few minutes ago. Oates had to go do something and Hopps is in her cubicle working on paperwork, or so she says. Precinct 3 showed up finally and they seem to be managing the entire crowd out there. It seems the situation has stabilized, but no one is any closer to figuring out what is going on out there." Nick sighed, it looked like he hadn't gotten a lot of sleep. With a sudden, new roommate like Anthony showing up at his doorstep, it was a lot harder to get a restful night.

"That's good to hear. Thanks for covering that." Anthony seemed genuinely grateful for Wilde assisting in covering for him.

"Guess it's my turn to cover for you." Nick yawned. "Fine, fine. I'll go distract the chief while you go figure out what any of this has to do with your wife. I'm too tired and confused to figure it out right now. Besides, anything that'll get you out of my home and back where you belong is fine by me." He added the last with a toothy grin and wink.

"You're a gentlemammal and a scholar!" Ralph whooped, moving forward to pat Wilde on the back.

Deftly dodging the gesture, he held a paw up to the wildebeest. "Easy with the compliments, you'll be stampeding all over me with them. I'm just helping out my friends. That's all." He motioned with his fingers between himself and Ralph, who seemed a bit miffed at Nick's response to his compliment. "I help you, you help me and I agree that I never saw you." He clicked his tongue like a trigger.

"Thanks again, Wilde." Anthony sagged, looking much relieved that Bogo wouldn't be breathing down his neck about any of this.

"No worries! Good luck finding your wife. Looking forward to hearing the whole story over a bug shake at Bugga Burger! Tomorrow at five, alright? It's a date then!" Finger-gunning as he left, he headed off towards the elevators to no doubt annoy Bogo about something frivolous.

"Remind me again why a fox is working at this department?" Ralph asked. It did seem odd that someone of his kind would be working here.

"He's a good cop and a great friend." Anthony admitted, looking after the swishing red tail disappear around the corner. "Hopps vouched for him and despite a lot of misgivings across the department, he has proven himself to be pretty reliable."

"He's a bit rough around the edges." Ralph observed.

"As most good cops are." Anthony defended. Waving a paw to follow him, "Come on, we don't have much time. Let's get to Raina down in the basement and get these two things looked at." His gaze passed over Steven, "You come too. Stay close and stay silent and…don't touch anything, please?"

"Yes, of course!" Steven fumbled at being addressed directly so suddenly.

Steven was a bit anxious, even though excitement was at the forefront of his mood. He had never been in the ZPD before. He never wanted to come here and most definitely never on the wrong side of the law. He was still a bit worried that Ralph or Anthony might connect him to the musk-scented weapons of Murana and declare him an accomplice and jail him for life as a result. Despite these fears, he was still curious about what went on behind closed doors where most civilians had no reason being.

They rode down to the bottom floor in silence, being ushered out by Anthony as they paced the austere corridors lined with inlaid cone sconces that tried to give a sense of décor to an otherwise bland look. Both followed the wolf, since he knew where he was going. They turned a few corners and entered a swinging door that led to a haphazard mess of examination tables, evidence bins stacked high on several counters and a lone sloth sitting in the middle of it all, squinting at the computer monitor in front of her.

The sloth had been there longer than most could remember, and many in the station relied on her methodical expertise to get the job done. The initial shock of seeing a sloth in such a pivotal role in the ZPD wore off for many once they realized the general pace of Zootopia was a lot slower than one would expect. Cases would not be solved within a day and paperwork could take weeks to get approved and finalized before being filed away. So her speed was perfectly on par with the operations tempo of the police department.

"Afternoon, Raina." Anthony greeted, not giving her much notice. "We'll just be a few moments with one of the computers. We'll be out of your fur shortly."

If she had heard him, she gave no indication. Not looking for permission, Anthony settled into one of the chairs lining the side wall with multiple, small cubicle booths with a lab computer at each one. Alongside each workstation were several devices where one could scan in evidence on the tray beneath the iris and pull up a 3D model of it in the computer, complete with density and material make-up details of the object in question.

Setting the kunai and torn cloth underneath the scanner, he yelled back, "Just sit over there along the wall, Steven, and don't touch anything." After a moment's thought, he added, "And don't report on anything you see here either. Don't make me regret allowing you in here."

Seeing that this might take a while and neither Raina nor Ralph would be much company, Steven shuffled over to the spare seats that seemed to be for much larger mammals. Heaving himself up onto one, he flopped down properly and began swinging his legs beneath the chair since they dangled well above the ground. He only stopped when the wildebeest decided to sit right next to him with a grunt. What did he want now?

"You two seem a bit tense around each other." Ralph commented without looking at the skunk.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Steven snarked, not really wanting to converse with Ralph right now. "I don't think you need me to recap why we're at odds with each other."

"No, I can gather enough to piece together the whole picture here." Ralph's analytical mind was going into overdrive. "You and Murana had a good thing going as a family unit. Suddenly this wolf comes in, sweeps your mom off her feet, and then decides he wants you moved out because he hates you."

Steven looked up at Ralph before returning to observe Anthony doing his research, "I wouldn't say he hated me either actually. I don't think Mom would have tolerated him much if he outright hated me."

"Well, they did have that fight this week as he said." Ralph mentioned.

Pondering that for a moment, Steven added, "It might have something to do with me. I don't know. I mean, I don't dislike the guy. He seems like a swell wolf. Got a good job and all. When he first got married to Mom, I did try my best to welcome him and treat him like a dad."

"I gather he didn't want someone like you?" Ralph probed, trying to better gauge Steven's emotions so as to not have the skunk close him off like he did before.

"I don't even know why. You'd think as a potential suitor to a female, you'd want to accept everything about them, right? To include their existing kids? Why bother entering into the relationship at all then? I mean, there was that other fox who loved me. He was fantastic and I would have loved him to be my dad." Steven bemoaned.

"Other…fox?" Ralph was inquisitive now. This mysterious figure of Murana, who was almost assuredly the Dark Flame Wolf, was starting to be quite the complex figure now. There seemed to be more to her than he had first assumed.

"If you two are done talking about my personal life, get over here and look over this with me." Anthony grumbled as he took the evidence gathered from the orphanage, bagged them up and marked them appropriately for later investigation.

Steven noticed the 3D scans of the kunai being represented on the screen. "Did you figure out who manufactured them?"

"That's the thing." Anthony tapped his chin, stuck in thought. "These are not commercially sold weapons, nor are they black market dealings either. I cross referenced all such instances of these weapon types among the entire database of recovered evidence in the ZPD vault and turned up with nothing. I even looked into cases involving known weapons dealers that we are keeping tabs on to see what they supply, but that didn't provide anything useful."

"You don't arrest these known illegal sellers?" Ralph was stunned.

Anthony gave an irritated look at the rookie, "Of course not. We at least know where they are and what they are capable of proliferating in Zootopia. We use them to get to the bigger fry that are far more dangerous. You snipe one of them out and the real threats will go further underground and be that much harder to rat out."

"Smart." Steven marveled. That was indeed a very ingenious way of keeping track of all the local thugs and where they get their armament. Only when the purchase history goes outside the expected norm would you go in and investigate the cause, which could lead to the wanted buyer. "So if it isn't either of those two things, where did these come from?" He looked over at the bagged metal blades.

"This looks like a custom job. Made specifically for whoever used this." Anthony replied promptly.

"For the Dark Flame Wolf. Your wife." Ralph stated bluntly.

Anthony growled. "I still refuse to believe that, so lay off."

"But didn't you smell her on that fabric, and your own son said she was-" Ralph began.

"I said lay off!" The wolf snarled, causing Steven and Ralph to draw back and even caused Raina to slowly glance up from her monitor and realize there were others in the room. "She could have just been at the wrong place at the wrong time. Possibly doing what she said she was going to do and adopt that raccoon or whatever and just got caught in whatever crossfire happened at the orphanage."

"She's the Dark Flame Wolf." Steven insisted. Either Anthony was being incredibly dense, which was probably not the case, or he was struggling to find ways to believe that his wife was not some mass-murdering vigilante. "Why won't you just admit it to yourself that this is reality?"

"I'll be the judge of that!" Anthony barked. Frustrated that things were not shaping up to be a very good day, he just turned back to the screen and stared glumly at the search results. It was clear he was simply shutting down, exhaustion, fatigue and more was getting to him.

Thinking about it a bit more, Steven posed the question, "So, would any of these black market dealers have the capability to make such custom-made orders like this?"

The wolf's eyes lit up with inspiration. "Yeah…a few of them!" He began typing in a few more parameters and a very short list popped up on the screen. "Well, we can rule Mr. Big and his mafia out." He clucked, scrolling through. "Huh…there is this 'Jack' here."

"Jack? Any other names, last names, aliases?" Ralph leaned in further.

"No…just Jack." It was such an odd way of cataloguing this supplier. You'd think whoever inputted it would be a bit more thorough.

"Where is he located?" Steven offered an avenue of searching.

A few key presses later, Anthony tapped the screen. "He's been logged in a few locations throughout Zootopia, but only one I recognize."

"How so? You been there?" Steven was confused. Unless Anthony was part of a sting, he was unclear why the wolf knew one of the places of businesses Jack operated at.

"Because I know the fox who owns the place. AJ." Anthony grit his teeth, almost grinding them with anger. "Didn't the panda at Tail Hollow mention she was kidnapped by a fox?"

Steven's heart sank. He knew AJ. He was the former lover of his mom and the fox who he wanted to be his dad during the time they were dating. It didn't work out and Murana left AJ. It wouldn't make sense nearly a decade later that AJ would come back and kidnap her, let alone destroy the orphanage in the process. Heck, he wasn't even a pirate as was described by Claire! However, he could easily see Anthony working himself up into a fervor that AJ was the culprit responsible for all of this.

"Maybe it wasn't AJ. Maybe it was a different fox?" Steven meeped, trying to placate Anthony's rising anger.

"Let's go. We're paying a visit to the Fox Den." He jabbed a claw at Ralph. "Get yourself a firearm. Where we're going, folks aren't exactly friendly to us cops. Best we be packing to protect ourselves." He gathered up his things and began to clear out his browsing history as he tossed the bagged evidence in the inbox bins for Raina to catalogue later.

"Don't go looking for a fight!" Steven began to breathe heavy again, his lungs contracting in another panic attack at the thought that Anthony might not be able to control himself around AJ.

The wolf paused and regarded the heaving skunk, frantically thrusting his paws into his pockets for his inhaler. "It's probably best you stay behind, Steven. It probably will not be a safe place for you."

"Thanks for your help, Mr. Stinkman." Ralph bowed his head slightly.

He felt incredibly sympathetic to the skunk. If it was true beyond a shadow of a doubt his mom was the Dark Flame Wolf and this so-called AJ had abducted her, things would not end well for anyone. The fact that Steven was a partial accomplice to her dealings seemed to have fallen by the wayside to the greater need of just simply finding Murana instead. It seemed she was the key to all the strange happenings going on right now in Zootopia. Ralph couldn't quite figure out how, but he knew he'd get to the bottom of it.

"Go home and stay safe, Steven." Anthony instructed, the first hint of concern on his face for his son-in-law. "We'll handle it from here. We'll get Murana back."

Steven barely had time to speak out to stop them as he took a second puff on his inhaler, letting the medicine get into his lungs to hold it there before breathing out. Within moments, they were gone, leaving without so much as a trace of their passing. Raina was already reaching out after them, her arm outstretched in an almost comical gesture of trying to delay their exit.

"Wait…Officer…Grayz…Your…request…for…evidence…retrieval…was…denied…by…Chief…Bogo." She called out after them fruitlessly.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – The Fox Den on Roaring St. – Against the Tundratown Border Wall_  
 _Thursday – 5:21 PM – Clear Skies with Scattered Clouds / Gusty Winds_

Steven shivered a bit, taking a small puff of air to calm himself as he peeked around the corner at the squat, brick and mortar building just down the street. Butted up against the imposing barrier wall to the chilly Tundratown district, it certainly gave off an air of imposing menace even though it was a rather small structure. He had never been to the Fox Den before, although he had known AJ for a good while during his time with Murana. He should technically be among friends there, right?

Steeling his nerves, Steven tried to stand up tall as he stepped out from behind the corner. Trying to appear bold, he strode down the sidewalk, acting as if the lounging predators on their apartment steps weren't terrifying the heck out of him with their leering stares. Stifling a cry as one barked loudly in what turned out to be a cough, he picked up the pace and was nearly opposite the entrance to the Fox Den. There was already a line forming for its opening at six.

He yelped, drawing a few looks from the growing line, as a voice behind him hissed, "What are you doing here, Steven?!" Anthony was glaring at him from behind a parked car alongside Ralph.

"W-what are you doing here?" Steven shot back, still recovering from the scare.

Anthony yanked him by the arm to squat next to the two of them behind the car. "We've been casing the joint to see if we could spot AJ. We didn't see him go in, but it is clear they are getting ready to open for business within the hour."

"Why don't we wait in line with everyone?" Steven suggested.

"What?" Anthony stared blankly.

"I don't think the bouncer would let us in." Ralph explained. "We're not exactly on the guest list and this place doesn't look friendly to cops." He looked up over the car at the large lion that was guarding the entrance with a rather stylish set of shades.

"It's alright." Steven patted Anthony on the shoulder, feeling a bit more confident now about the whole situation. "AJ and I are actually great pals."

"Your favored dad?" Anthony spat. He wasn't exceptionally happy that this fox had the favor of Murana at one point and still had the adoration of her son.

"Well, you certainly are doing yourself no favors by being mean and insulting to me." Steven put his hands on his hips, his own eyes bearing down onto Anthony's, who was still kneeling to be at eye level. "If you had just made an attempt, any attempt, at trying to get to know me rather than write me off the moment you met me, things might have turned out different for all of us. Who knows? Murana may not be in whatever situation she's in now if we had just been together as a family!"

Looking at the heaving skunk before him, diminutive, but still very brave, Anthony had no rebuttal to give. The skunk might even be right. "Fine. We'll do it your way. Let's get to the back of the line and when we get to the door, you get us in. If that doesn't work, things might get…ugly."

"Let's hope they don't." Ralph murmured, drawing a nod of agreement from Steven.

Acting casual, they circled the block again and wound up back at the Fox Den. Not exactly looking like the other patrons of the establishment, they did stand out like a sore thumb. A few mammals gave them some cursory glances, but most were more interested in getting into the club and raving the night away. The doors opened and the bodies started filing in, some being turned away by the bouncer, but more getting in without a hitch.

"Hold it, squirt!" The lion held out a paw, big enough to crush Steven's skull in it. "Where do you and your friends think you're going?"

"Inside?" Steven said meekly, his faith in the plan faltering.

"Nope, take a hike." The bouncer growled, jabbing a finger to hit the road.

"Look, can you tell AJ that Steven Stinkman is here with him?" Steven blurted, trying to stall the inevitable.

The lion tipped the shades down to look at the small skunk a bit more directly. "You know AJ?" After a nod. "One moment please." He brought out a walkie talkie and spoke into it, "Hey AJ, we got a skunk out here saying he knows you. Goes by Stinkman."

A surprisingly deep voice for a fox boomed through the mic, "Oh, wow! Yeah, of course. Hold him right there, I'm coming right up!"

The lion clicked off and saddled the device back into its holster on his hip. "You three stand over to the side here while I let the rest of the line through." He roughly pulled them aside while resuming his duty as door guard.

After a few minutes, a rather large fox with a muscular build came out. His trademark brown fur markings identified him to Steven unmistakably. His happy demeanor faltered a bit when he saw Anthony and Ralph, but he cheered up some when he saw Steven. Rushing forward to pick the skunk up in a bear hug, he nuzzled into Steven's neck.

"Stinkbug! How you been, buddy?!" He laughed as he squeezed the skunk.

"Fine!" Steven squeaked, gasping for air.

"So what brings you here to my humble place of business?" He chuckled jovially as he set the skunk back down.

"We're actually looking for Murana. I believe you know her?" Anthony jumped in, doing his best to suppress a growl. He couldn't believe this fox had it good with his wife before they got married. There didn't seem to be anything special about him.

AJ's expression turned cold as he regarded the wolf and wildebeest. "Who's your friends?"

"This is my 'dad.' Murana's husband." Steven clarified. He motioned over to Ralph, "And a friend who is helping us find her. She went missing about a day ago and no one has seen her or been able to contact her since."

"So why come to me? What makes you think I know where she is?" AJ hadn't taken his eyes off Anthony since discovering he was Murana's current husband.

"How about we come in, get comfortable and we can talk all about it?" Steven moved to diffuse the situation. It seemed all he was trying to do today was resolve problems and hold people back from doing something worse. "It's been a long time and I'd love to catch up with on how you've been doing!" He added sincerely.

Distracted from his gaze on Anthony, AJ turned to look at the skunk before motioning them to come in. "Of course, come in and we'll get ourselves a drink." After one last glower at the wolf, AJ slipped into the darkness of the mood-lit club.

Steven and the rest followed suit, bypassing the gruff lion, giving them a watchful eye as they entered. Inside the club, things were already starting to get heated. The heavy bass was reverberating off the walls and shaking their very bones at the sick beat that was blaring out of the multitude of speakers at the far end of the dance floor up by the DJ, a rather eccentric-looking leopard with extreme amounts of bling adorning his ears and neck.

AJ pointed towards a side booth at the edge of the wall near the end of a row of circular booths with covering sheets to prevent onlookers from seeing what went on at the tables. Steven scooted in around to the back of the table while Anthony and Ralph squeezed in as much as they could. It was very loud, and they could barely hear each other speak, but it was still a far cry better than out on the main floor despite having to shout.

At length, AJ came back with four drinks expertly positioned between his fingers. Setting them down and pushing them off to their recipients, he lounged down opposite Ralph, sitting close to Steven. "So, Stinkbug, what you been up to these days? How is the old girl doing?" He smiled as he took a good chug of his liquor.

"You mean Mom? She's…not been well as of late. Last time I saw her, she and I got into a bit of a fight." Steven looked down at his untouched drink in shame. He had a small ball of anxiety in the pit of his stomach that made him believe he was at fault for her disappearance.

AJ's ears fell. Placing a paw on the skunk's shoulder and squeezing it slightly, he consoled, "I'm sure she'll turn up soon. You know how she is." He gave Steven a small wink where Ralph and Anthony would not be privy to. "I'd say give her another few days to turn up, and if she doesn't turn up by then, I'd go call the cops to put out an alert." He chortled. "Besides, I just realized, you're an adult now! Got any ladies in your life yet? Gotten laid yet?" He elbowed Steven in the ribs at this.

"No! I've had enough today! In fact, I've had enough females for a month!" Steven yelled, not wanting to be ensnared yet again in the coils of another girl after his goods.

Giving a low whistle, AJ gave a small slap to Steven's back. "You sly skunk! And here I thought you were the innocent flower! Well, if commitment isn't quite your thing, I have a few lovely pred ladies I can introduce you to who are all action and no chain. Just say the word, little buddy!"

"N-no…I'll be fine." Steven declined meekly.

AJ took a swig of his drink being leaning in closer to the skunk, "You sure? Because I have it on good authority that some of them are exquisitely skilled with their toes." He winked knowingly.

"…I'm listening." Steven said with rising interest.

"What? Are you doing prostitution on the side here too alongside kidnapping, AJ?" Anthony accused, putting his entire arm in front of Steven's face and gently pushing him back.

"Excuse me?" The hairs on AJ's neck were ruffled. "I'll have you know that I run a reputable establishment here and I do not have sex for hire on the menu, let alone kidnapping. I'm insulted. What business is it of yours what two consenting adults do anyway in the privacy of my booths or rooms? What are you, cops?" He said in jest, his laidback mood returning.

"Actually, we are." Ralph spoke, right before Anthony clapped a paw over his mouth to shut him up. Even Steven winced as the fact was revealed. Either not realizing or caring about what he said, the gnu took a huge sip of his drink after sniffing it a few times.

AJ's disposition soured immediately. "Oh…that is a pity. Well, I hate to disappoint you three, especially you, Steven, but I don't know where she is, and frankly I'd wager she is in a far safer place now than with you." He took another swig of his drink, keeping a close eye on the wolf.

Anthony slammed a fist onto the table, causing Steven to jump and a tiger bodyguard nearby to take notice and start inching closer. "Look, fox." This drew an instinctual flick of AJ's ear. "We found some discarded weapons at the scene of a crime where Murana was last seen by eyewitness accounts. Weapons that were tracked to one mammal named: 'Jack.' One of his storehouses has been marked to be here, at your club. Either you tell us about this Jack or you will be arrested as an accomplice in the kidnapping of Murana Wolford."

"That is quite the allegation." AJ seemed relaxed now, slowly drinking the remainder of his booze. Setting the mug softly down to the table, the silence between them was thick, even though music was pounding through their skulls. "Think you got it all figured out, do you? If you were fully certain I was the criminal here and somehow Murana is here with this 'Jack' character, I would have thought you'd call for backup. Wouldn't this be a sting? Why is it just you two? Steven, why have you thrown your lot in with these fools?"

"AJ…please don't. I'm just here to find Mom." Steven pleaded.

AJ summarily ignored him as he leaned forward on the table. "Here's my thought…Mr. Wolford." He sneered as he said the wolf's proper title. "I'm thinking you aren't really supposed to be here and are doing this off the books for reasons that might get you or your wife in trouble. Am I right? In which case, it would be well within my rights to throw you off my property since you do not have a warrant to be here, but not without beating up on you since I did not see your badges and I mistook you for common trespassers."

"Are you actually threatening a cop?" Ralph balked, the gall of this fox astounding him.

"I'm threatening two idiots who have no business or legal right to be here, disrupting my place of work for a case I'd wager is something they also have no business sticking their noses into!" AJ finished with a satisfied smirk.

Anthony growled, "My wife's missing and her life could be on the line!"

"Doesn't seem like you're a good husband if you can't keep track of your own wife." AJ just could not contain his mirth at aggravating the wolf.

"At least she's mine and not yours!" Anthony roared, gathering the attention of another bouncer.

"Funny, if you were that good a husband, I wonder why she crawled back to me this Tuesday for some fun? Guess she knew who the better lover was." AJ gave a meaningful look.

That teared it. Steven dove for the seat as Anthony surged across the table and began choking AJ. Ralph brayed angrily as he stood, shocked at his colleague completely losing his cool and harming a civilian. On one hand, the fox certainly deserved the ass-whupping and his prejudice against foxes was helping that notion, but he was also a fellow cop and shouldn't be acting this way.

The decision was suddenly made for him when he felt two rough hands grapple him from behind and literally lift him off the floor and fling him to the dance room floor. Steven screamed as Anthony was forcibly torn from AJ and slammed to the floor by a rather large buffalo. AJ hacked and coughed a few times, rubbing his tender neck at the brutal strangling.

"AJ, stop! Just let them go! We'll just leave peaceably!" Steven parleyed.

"Do you even like your Dad?" Anthony fired back, getting up out of the booth. "He seems like kind of an asshole."

"No, well…yeah, not entirely!" Steven was struggling to find the right words.

"Then you wouldn't mind if we have a little fun with them then!" He whooped as he bounded up to the DJ turnstiles, taking the headphones from the leopard as he spoke into the microphone, his voice echoing throughout the club. "Who here wants to see a good fight?" The dancing crowd roared back in unison, some completely high out of their minds by now. "Mosh pit in the center! Battle music coming right up! Have at it!" He barked happily.

Jarring techno music flashed through the room as the crowd was worked up to pandemonium. Anthony and Ralph were pushed back by the bouncers into the center of the dance floor, each being jostled and rammed by mammals too drunk or gone to even care who they were. Ralph ducked under a punch, sidestepping a lunge before thrusting an elbow into the back of a cheetah, pounding him to the floor with the force of the blow. Anthony was faring little better, being besieged by both the buffalo and tiger.

"This wasn't exactly what I signed up for when I came to join you!" Ralph admitted, getting punched in the jaw and winding up on the floor. He had to roll to the side as he narrowly avoided a few hooves coming to crush his head from various dancing revelers.

"Just work your way to the exit! This is a bust! We need to-" Anthony was cut off as the buffalo barreled into him horns first, lifting him up and over him. Flying through the air, the crowd parted for his descent, cheering as he crumpled to the ground with a crunch. They all swooped in on him like savages and began pounding and beating on his body.

Steven saw Ralph disappear into the crowd as the bouncers worked their way through the blitzed dancers to finish the job. He knew he needed to stop this madness now. Surely AJ would listen to some reason and their previous relationship should amount to something! Darting past several drunks tripping over themselves in their stupor, he leapt up to the podium and tugged on AJ's sleeve.

Distracted, he looked down at Steven, "What is it, Stinkbug? Enjoying the show? Murana would have loved it!"

"No! I'm not! Please stop this! You can't kill them!" He tugged harder.

AJ sighed, putting the headphones around his neck, "Look, Steven. I like you, but our past friendship will only take you so far. I love you like a son just like Murana does, but this isn't your affair. Relax, I don't want cop blood on my hands anyhow, not good for business, you know. I'll be sure to stop it before it gets out of hand." Satisfied with this answer, AJ put back on the headphones and swapped up tunes to match the ensuing battle.

Steven frantically looked back to the dance floor and saw Anthony and Ralph with various cuts and bleeding lesions. Ralph looked like he was holding a broken arm, cringing hard as he tried to hold it tight against his side. They may not die tonight, but they'd certainly be hospitalized before it was all over.

Seeing as AJ was no help, Steven began scurrying around the club. He ducked into side hallways, sniffing around the private rooms, trying to figure out if there was something he could use to stop the insanity. Then suddenly, he smelled her. It was as clear as the night he earned his freedom at the musk mill. The smell of his Mom, Murana.

Getting low to the ground, it was still hard to decipher out her smell from the menagerie of scents permeating the entire place. The roar of the crowd grew fierce as it seemed something bad had happened out there. Heart pounding faster, he continued to track the scent until it landed him back into the club floor proper. The pulsating lights were flashing faster as it seemed the din was building to a crescendo, the floor rumbling with hoofs and paws stomping.

The smell was the strongest just behind the bar counter. Steven couldn't mistake her scent. It was partly his as well, given how long he had been with her and how many times she sprayed herself with his musk. The bartender was completely oblivious and was focused too much on the fight. Unfurling the standing mat, he saw a trap door in the floor. Curious, he opened it up and descended down the ladder into the darkness.

The dark tunnel opened up into a calcified cavern with a ship moored to a makeshift dock bordering a shack. Instantly, Steven knew this was the place. This was where this 'Jack' character was hiding out. Was Anthony right? Was Jack or AJ responsible for kidnapping Murana? He didn't know what to believe at this point. He just wanted Mom back.

He was sniffing around the boat emblazoned with the name, Foxglove III, when a calm voice caused his to shriek, a little musk escaping from him as he whipped around to see a white fox in a bowler cap regarding him with extreme interest. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"Are…are you Jack?" Steven asked nervously, backing up until his tail thumped against the ship siding.

Raising an eyebrow, the fox smiled a toothy grin. "I guess you could call that my callsign. My name is actually Billy Silva. And who might you be, little skunk?"

* * *

 _This was a very fun chapter to write. With the three 'investigators' tracking down Murana's trail, I wanted to ensure that each player had a part in helping with the case. Ralph brought them to the orphanage. Anthony pinpointed a potential lead at AJ's club. Steven was the glue that held the tenuous relationship together and helped get them into the club proper. Each character had a role and made them uniquely important during this chapter, something I wanted to emphasize. The first third was interesting and the hardest to pin down how exactly they were going to get from the orphanage to the club with AJ. Once I figured out there would be pieces left behind by Murana, either purposefully or not, it was an easy matter of sifting in a middle section at the ZPD that I could use to expand upon the relationship between Anthony and Steven with regard to Murana. It was fun to revisit AJ again, but in a far different capacity than before. Gone is the friendly fox we met in Day 2 with Murana and we now get to see another side to him we weren't privy to before. It's always good to add extra, unexpected layers to characters to flesh them out as fully 3-dimensional people. I was unsure of where to cut the chapter, seeing as the entire scene wasn't fully done yet, but since it was getting a bit long, I felt it right to stop right when Steven met Billy - another meeting of supposed chance that could possibly be important later._


	13. Thursday - Scents of the Past - Evening

_Savannah Central – The Fox Den on Roaring St. – Against the Tundratown Border Wall_  
 _Thursday – 6:23 PM – Clear Skies with Scattered Clouds / Gusty Winds_

Steven was terrified. Even though he wasn't fond of Anthony, his own father-in-law was getting pummeled upstairs alongside his colleague, Ralph, and he was alone with this mysterious fox who was supposedly involved in some shady business, to including a potential kidnapping of his Mom. The fact he was trapped wasn't helping matters. The only way back out was either right past the fox before him or into the river, which he was not sure how far it was before the next bit of landing.

"You all right? I asked you what your name was." Billy repeated, looking concerned for the little skunk.

"Stinkman…S-Steven Stinkman." He responded without thinking. His eyes were darting around the place, hoping there was some other form of escape that didn't involve getting near this criminal or drowning in the water.

"It is very nice to meet you. Might I ask who you are with? It's not every day I get a visitor down here quite like you. How did you find me?" Billy pressed. It was clear that he was moving closer and into a position where it would be near impossible to get around him without coming into contact. Steven was being cornered.

"I'm with my…Dad, Anthony. We're looking for my Mom here." In his panic, Steven was just spilling out anything without a thought to what he was actually revealing. His breathing was rapidly increasing, and he would soon hyperventilate if he didn't use his medicine soon.

"Your…Mom?" A curious look crossed over Billy's face. It was as if he was making a few connections of his own. "Does your mom…happen to be a wolf?"

Steven's eyes snapped back to Billy. "Why…why do you ask?" He inadvertently pulled the small, scent can of putrid, musk out of his pocket, finger ready on the trigger to spray.

Billy's eyes grew wide as he got excited at the prospect of finally meeting the creator of the musk Murana supplied him. In his fervor, he had completely forgotten his manners, his eyes locking onto the small weapon in Steven's paws. "That canister of yours," He said pointing, "Might I borrow that for a few?"

"Excuse me?" Steven stood aghast, his paws clutching at his precious scent. Swirling thoughts of being in the musk mill all over again dominated his mind. Fear gripped him as he saw before him nothing more than yet another mammal wanting him for his musk. "No! Get away from me!"

Eyes bulging as Steven made a dash between the fox's legs, Billy reached out to grab the skunk, narrowly snagging his tail by a small margin. "Stop! I'm not trying to hurt you! I just want to talk! I think we can help each-" He groaned as Steven quickly rolled onto his back underneath him and kick upwards into his groin, causing daggers of pain to knife up into his loins.

"You're just trying to use me! Just like everyone else!" Steven's fight or flight response was paramount.

He scrambled out from under Billy, his paws slipping on his scent can. It clattered out of view behind a workbench. Cursing that he lost his only protection, he skittered over to the shack and began fumbling around underneath the table trying in vain to find where his can went to. It was becoming harder to breathe and he knew he needed his inhaler soon, but he didn't feel like he had time to take a pause to inhale a puff. The growl of Billy just beyond the doorway sent shockwaves of terror through him. The fox was sure to come kill him now that he was injured!

"Steven!" Billy roared, staggering up to a standing position, his legs wobbly from the blow to his nether regions. "Look, I'm trying to help you! Just calm down and we can work things out! There's been a misunderstanding!"

"The only misunderstanding is that it was wrong of me to come here!" Steven freaked, finally finding something that looked like a bomb perched perfectly on a rack nearby several other weapons of similar build to the ones Anthony had found in Tail Hollow. Grabbing it and holding the bomb aloft, he stepped out into view. "Stay back! I'm not afraid to use this!"

Billy put both his paws out to ward off Steven's ire, "Whoa…now just hold on there. You don't know what you're dealing with here. That is a very potent stink bomb. It'll knock the two of us out and probably everyone else above. I'd advise you to very carefully put that down."

Steven looked at the device a bit more cautiously, but refused to bring it down. "Thanks for the warning. Maybe this is exactly what I need! Now stay back and let me leave. I'm sorry to have disturbed you."

Billy found it odd that even now, the skunk was apologizing for his behavior when it was evident he was scared out of his wits. He needed to find some way to pacify this skunk before it got out of hand. "Let's make a deal, you hand me that and I'll help you find your scent can and we can both come to a mutual agreement about what to do next, alright? After all, it was you who came barging into my home here, so I'd say that is fair."

Steven hesitated at this. Other than AJ, he hadn't had many good experiences with foxes before, and now that his one good fox friend was allowing a full-on beatdown of his only parental figure available, he wasn't sure of any of them. The prejudice against foxes ran deep in Zootopia and this situation warranted nothing less than caution. Billy was saying soothing words, but to Steven, there was nothing that proved otherwise that he wouldn't stab him in the back when he first got the chance.

Seeing that Steven was about to shake his head in defiance, Billy made a command decision to bum rush the little skunk and make a grab for the bomb. Steven shrieked as he fell backwards, his rump pointing high into the air with tail rigid. Billy knew the telltale signs of danger too late as he tripped over the skunk's tail as it jerked out beneath him during the fall and flew face forward between Steven's legs.

"Wait…no!" Billy yelled.

It was too late, the terror took over and pants on or not, Steven let loose. His scent glands tightened as his spray seeped through his shorts. The silver fox got a face full of it that made him retch, his eyes rolling up into his head before flopping over and passing out. Embarrassed that he soiled himself and nose cringing at his own stench, Steven shakily backed off from the comatose fox. Quickly snatching the stink bomb that had rolled out of his paws a short distance, he tore up the rocky steps into the dark gloom leading back to the club in hopes he was not too late.

The pounding of the music was reaching a fever pitch as AJ rocked the DJ stand with a freshly made remix of his own, concocted on the spot for the ensuing scuffle. The sight of Ralph and Anthony was all but gone now. Steven could only imagine their bodies mangled and bloodied by the mile of mammals now congregated in one part of the dance floor, bouncing and stomping like the crazed animals they were.

Scampering along the edges of the dangerous rave pit of doped out mammals, Steven nearly squealed when a rhino slammed up against the wall in front of him, nearly crushing him. The rhino slumped over with a thud and was out cold, tongue lolling out in a state of drugged up bliss. Trying to breathe in deeply, Steven could barely get in any air as his lungs ceased up. He needed his inhaler badly, but Ralph and Anthony needed him more. He needed to get to AJ now!

"AJ! Stop the music. Tell them to leave my Dad and Grayz alone!" Steven shouted right next to the fox, hoping he'd hear him over the din.

AJ's ears were as sharp as ever. Without even looking at the skunk, "Oh, so now you're buddy-buddy with asshole down there? I'll stop after this song. I promise."

"No, you will stop right now!" Steven screamed, thrusting up the bomb into the air above his head. "I'm not afraid to use this!"

Instantly recognizing the weapon for what it was, he tried to make a snatch for it. "Hey, Stinkbug! That isn't funny! Give that here before someone gets hurt!"

"The only ones getting hurt are my friends down there!" He jabbed a finger in the direction of where he thought the bodies of Anthony and Ralph lay.

"I will stop once you give me that." AJ made another lunge.

"I won't stop until…" Steven couldn't hold on any longer, his anxiety caught up to him.

His lungs couldn't draw in anymore air. His eyelids drooped as he went limp. AJ killed the music and yelled for the crowd to disperse as the bomb slipped from Steven's grip and hit the ground. Everything moved in slow motion. Steven was barely aware of the noxious gas diffusing through the club as his body crumbled to the floor. Nothing registered as he lay there on the ground, his eyes glossing over the multitude of bodies dropping like flies.

The last thing he remembered before blacking out was one final thought, "Mom, I hope you are safe. I love you."

* * *

 _Savannah Central – The Fox Den on Roaring St. – Against the Tundratown Border Wall_  
 _Thursday – 9:51 PM – Overcast / Light Drizzle_

Steven wasn't sure if it was the sudden, loud clang heard from outside the cabin or the rocking of the boat that woke him up. His eyes flew open. He wasn't sure what happened or how he got here. He was in a small room that appeared to be inside of a schooner, complete with rectangular port holes that looked out onto the deck. The undulating light filtering in through the glass indicated he was still underground and most likely on the boat he saw earlier when he met Billy. Was that all a dream?

Groaning, fighting back a piercing headache, he sat up and surveyed his situation. He looked down and saw he was no longer wearing the clothes he came here with, but rather a loose fitting set of cargo shorts and t-shirt with a gaudy clothes fashion line logo. The thought that someone had changed him while he was out hit him like a shot as he squeaked and backed up into a sleeping body next to him that he hadn't realized was there.

"Hmmm?" The large mass mumbled, shifting over, still half asleep.

Frightened, Steven shied away from the large figure sharing the bed space, but his eyes immediately melted in relief as he recognized the wolf beside him. "Mom!" He cried out with joy and hopped onto her, giving her smothering kisses and breathing in her scent deeply, finally at peace that he had found her at last.

"Aaah!" Murana shrieked as she flung the tiny skunk off of her. She brought the covers up to her chest as she scooted back to the far end of the bed, her terrified eyes locked onto Steven. "Who are you?! What do you want?! Leave me alone!" She cried out in a voice that was quite unlike her. As if she was attempting to be younger than she was.

Steven was confused. "Mom? It's me, your son, Steven. Don't you remember me? I've been looking for you all day!"

"I don't know you! I don't have a family! They all died!" She began shaking her head violently, trying to erase the memories that were flooding back again.

"Hey, it's alright! It's just me, Billy. Steven here is a friend!" The silver fox came hurtling in from the left down the stairwell from the above deck. Steven jolted back at the sight of him, but held still as he could see that the fox was visibly calming Murana down. "You are safe here. No one is going to harm you."

"You sure?" Murana looked pleadingly up at the fox leaning over her, a paw on each of her shoulders.

He nodded affirmatively, "I'm sure. Just lay back down and get some rest. We're just discussing where to go next to keep you safe. Steven here," He motioned over towards the skunk, "Is here to help find a place for you to stay."

"Alright. Thank you, Billy." Murana fussed, trying to get back into a comfortable position to sleep, but it was clear she'd probably not be resting again anytime soon.

"If you'll come with me." Billy said firmly, beckoning Steven with a paw to follow him up top.

Nervously, Steven trailed after the fox and peeked his head out of the opening leading to the bow of the ship. He could see Billy standing beside AJ, who was sitting next to an injured Ralph, helping him treat his wounds. Anthony was opposite them on the starboard side, angrily glaring at AJ and preferring to treat himself alone. The two foxes were talking in hushed tones with Ralph keenly listening in.

At length, Billy turned around to address Steven, "I apologize for earlier. I did not mean to frighten you. I felt it best to redress you in some fresh clean clothes I had and lay you beside your mother when you awoke to help calm your panic. Knowing that she was safe, I figured you'd be more amicable to hearing out what I had to say."

"That's…very considerate of you." After a few moments thought, Steven pointed at AJ. "Hey! You lied to me! You acted as if you didn't know where Mom was and she was sleeping here this whole time!"

AJ put his hands up to defend himself. It looked like he was about to retort, but Billy stepped in and interjected. "He was just doing his part in making sure she was safe. I wouldn't expect him to trust some random wolf and wildebeest with her whereabouts, even if they were traveling with her son, Steven. I can explain the situation, if I may?"

"By all means, do explain why Grayz and I had to get beaten up just to find out my wife was here all along." Anthony growled, his teeth bared, all sense of etiquette gone. He turned back to licking his wounds as he listened.

"It started a very long time ago. Murana has been an old client of mine. I don't like to divulge my business with others and I prefer a code of secrecy with my dealings, however in this instance, I am willing to make an exception since Murana is very dear to you both." Billy's eyes traveled from Anthony to Steven. "She and I met during a mutual…shall we say, transaction and we realized that we saw eye to eye on a lot of things. So we started a partnership then. She keeps the worst criminals off the streets and provides me funds, and I get her the very best gear for her job."

"And you've known she was the Dark Flame Wolf this entire time?" Anthony asked Steven with apparent shock.

Scratching the backside of his neck, Steven responded, "Well…yeah. I've known the moment I met her. Not sure if she told you, but she rescued me from a musk mill where they used me only for my scent."

"That's disgusting." Anthony wrinkled his snout. "Why would anyone want essence of skunk? That stuff is terrible."

Billy twitched his nose, memories of being face first into a full-on skunk spray coming back to him. "Well, it isn't so bad." At an odd look from Steven, Billy coughed and continued, "Despite the abhorrent nature of the spray, it does have a lot of weaponized uses and sells for a high price on the black market. Murana herself was using the stuff and came to me often with bottles of it to develop and create weapons for her."

"Did you know she was using your musk like this?" Ralph was curious.

Feeling a bit self-conscious with all their eyes looking at him, Steven turned away as he sheepishly admitted, "Yeah…I mean, I knew she was going after the really bad mammals for a long time and she requested a long time ago if she could use what I have to help assist in stopping them."

"And you were okay with her killing everyone in the process?" Ralph's voice grew stern.

"What? No! I only found out recently that she was not really arresting them or helping them go to jail, but instead just burning them alive. If I had known she was doing that, I wouldn't have helped her at all." He said, with some indignity.

"You mean this whole time, you didn't make the connection between the burned victims all these years and what your Mom was doing?" Ralph grilled, leaning forward now.

"Lay off the boy!" Anthony snapped.

"No, it's alright." Steven put a paw up. "It's a very good question. I honestly didn't follow any murder cases since I don't do well with such things. I preferred instead to cover happier and less dangerous stories for ZNN. I just passed off any information I got on bad people to Murana and just left her to do her thing."

"Blissful ignorance, basically." Billy supported Steven in his innocence.

"Where did you get this information? Who was your informant?" Ralph was insistent.

"I think we're going off the rails here." Billy stepped between them. "Point is, she was my client and I do everything in my power to take care of my customers. So when we discovered her lost and wandering the tunnels just inside the barrier wall linking us to Sahara Square, I knew we needed to bring her in and care for her."

"When did you find her?" Anthony asked, genuine worry etched onto his muzzle.

"I found her in the early hours of the morning after my club closed." AJ offered, hopping into the conversation for the first time. "I had just locked up the place and was heading home in my car when I saw her on the side of the tunnel, completely delirious and acting as if I wasn't even there. So, of course I had to bring her back here since she'd be the safest with Billy."

"What happened to her?" Steven looked back down the steps to the sleeping form of Murana.

Billy shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure. She was wearing the suit I made for her, but it was completely shredded." He walked around the primary housing cabin and pulled something out of a chest along the side before tossing it on the deck before them. It was a crimson suit very reminiscent of what the Dark Flame Wolf wore. "I'm actually quite upset that it ended up in this condition. I spent a lot of time on it. I personally would like to know who did this to her."

"What's wrong with her? It's like she didn't know who I was." Steven whined. He wanted nothing more than to snuggle up under the covers with her right now and sniff her paws until he fell asleep alongside her.

"That's the funny thing." Billy huffed. "She didn't recognize me or AJ either and I doubt she'd remember either of you." He nodded his head towards Anthony and Ralph.

"Well, technically we've not formally met." Ralph pointed out.

"Regardless, the last time I saw her was Tuesday, not even two days ago. Whatever happened yesterday must have shocked her so bad that she's regressed to the mind of a child." Billy explained, pacing back and forth on the deck.

"What do you mean?" Anthony asked warily.

"What I mean is: she is going through some form of PTSD that was triggered by some memory or experience in her past. It was so traumatic that she's reverting back to coping techniques that saw her through those awful times." He stopped and turned towards Anthony. "She most likely doesn't remember any of us because we weren't there when whatever event happened to cause her to be like this. To her, we're all strangers that could harm her."

"Trust me, I tried to get her to remember who I was and what we meant to each other." AJ offered, which elicited a low growl from Anthony. AJ extended a paw for understanding, "Look, we have a good history together and I was hoping some of that would be remembered. Apparently none of it was." He looked down in regret.

"Murana means a lot to all of us…" Billy gave a sidelong glance to Ralph, "Well, most of us anyway. We all want to see her safely home. To that end, I want your promise that you'll keep my client safe if I give her to you to take home." Billy's voice was soft, but the promise of threat was clear if not followed.

"Of course. I won't be leaving her side at all tonight!" Steven proclaimed, puffing out his chest. All he wanted was to protect his Mom.

"What about all the murders she's done?" Ralph probed.

"Now's not the time!" Anthony snarled, all eyes giving the wildebeest scathing glares.

"She's in no condition to answer to any of that, and besides, I'd have to stop you if you were to arrest her now." Billy warned.

"And you're not in any condition to win that fight." AJ chimed in, looking dangerous and foreboding as his face was like stone, belying nothing of his true intent.

"Speaking of which, why shouldn't we just arrest you both for assaulting two police officers and harboring a known criminal and dealing with black-market selling of dangerous weapons and chemicals?" Ralph accused, thrusting a hoof at both AJ and Billy, standing up himself to look down on the foxes.

"Because you came barging into our place of business without proper clearance and sans warrant on a case AJ tells me he is positive you weren't even supposed to be a part of, thus violating a lot of regulations within your department at the ZPD." Billy chuckled, crossing his arms as he smugly looked at the two cops. "If anything, you'd get in far more trouble than we would. Without much legitimate proof to tie us to any wrongdoing, we'd get nothing more than a slap on the wrist after a few days in jail and sent home with a warning. You have no power here right now. If you still want to pursue this course of action, by all means, go secure a warrant and we can talk more seriously about this matter."

"We managed to track you down just fine using what we found." Ralph snorted.

"On pure dumb luck. Nothing that can concretely tie us to anything you are accusing us of." Billy said with finality.

"Hey, I just want to go home! I just want to take care of Mom!" Steven shouted, standing up on the side bench built into the boat. All eyes turned to him. "Look, I get that my Mom has done bad things, but she's also done a lot of good as well. She saved me and a lot of other mammals from certain death or captivity for the rest of their lives. She's protecting innocents while punishing the guilty. More so than that, she took me in when no one else would have me. I owe her my life. I just want to see her safely home. We can sort all this other nonsense out later."

"Well said, Stinkbug!" AJ whooped, feeling proud of his little skunk friend.

"Why is everyone shouting?" A soft voice emanated from the doorway leading into the cabin hold below.

Everyone focused on Murana, who was wearing a rather tight shirt and set of shorts, clearly meant for a smaller mammal. Ralph had to look away to maintain a sense of propriety. Although taller than half the people present, dwarfed only by Ralph and Anthony, she appeared to be very meek and timid. She was hunched over, clutching the doorframe tightly as she fearfully gazed upon each one of them, tail tucked between her legs. This was not the bold, confident Murana they remembered.

Billy immediately swooped to her side, wrapping an arm around her waist as he led her towards the edge of the group. "It's alright, honey. We're just deciding where you're going to stay tonight. It's not entirely safe here and we need to move you or else the bad guys will come find you."

"The bad guys?" Anthony's brow furrowed, his need to protect his wife burning fiercely.

The silver fox shook his head curtly, make a signal at the neck to knock off that line of questioning right now. "This nice wolf and skunk will be escorting you to your new home."

"I'm being adopted?" Murana's ears perked up, a look of hope glistening in her eyes.

After looking around the confused group, Billy had to play along, "Yes…yes, you could say that. They'll be your temporary family for now. They've agreed to make sure you are safe and loved."

"You're talking to her like a child." Anthony hissed, trying not to draw too much attention to his vexation at how this fox was treating his wife.

"That's because she is…right now." Billy asserted more firmly, giving Murana's shoulders another squeeze.

A sudden buzzing shook everyone. "Oh, sorry about that!" Ralph excused himself, digging into his pocket before pulling out a phone. "It's my wife texting me." He took one look at the message and his face blanched. "Um…I'm going…to have to go to the hospital now. Some nurse named Grisele has been trying to contact me for the last few hours. My wife collapsed and is admitted into the hospital. I'm not sure where my son is right now."

"All the better!" Billy said cheerfully. "Best place to get your wounds tended to." He gritted his teeth at their severity, amazed that both Anthony and Ralph were putting on a brave face over them. "Seriously, I apologize for my colleague's actions back in the club. He was meaning well to protect both myself and Murana. He hasn't had many good encounters with law enforcement in the past. It's made him a bit jumpy."

"I'll be fine." Anthony muttered, maneuvering his arm a bit, hearing some satisfying pops. "I just want to take my wife home and get this stench off of me." He curled his snout at the lingering musk hanging over all of them.

"But we only came in one cruiser and I have to get to the hospital." Ralph pointed out.

AJ rose his paw, "I can take grass grazer over here to his wife in my car. No big deal."

"You sure? I thought you hated us cops?" Anthony retorted.

"Hey, I know you think I'm an asshole, but I'm not heartless. Consider it me trying to make it up to you guys, alright?" AJ waved him off with a paw, gathering his things in preparation to leave. "Come on, buddy." He tapped Ralph on the arm, "Follow me, we'll get you to your wife and kid."

"Thank you again." Ralph looked over at Anthony and Steven. "I'm sorry I have to leave you two now, but I need to attend to my family."

"Of course, do what you need to do. I need to attend to mine." Anthony smiled, nodding as Ralph got up onto his two hooves, limping as he followed AJ.

The buff fox stopped within millimeters of Anthony. Leaning close so only he could hear, AJ whispered, "Just so you know, I care about Murana. A lot. You take her home. You keep her safe. If you hurt her in any way, I will find out and I guarantee you won't be walking this one off when I'm finished with you."

Without waiting for a response, AJ marched off down the plank to the pier below and both him and Ralph receded into the darkness leading back up into the club. Wrapping a fresh quilt over Murana as he felt her shiver, Billy regarded the others.

"Alright, I'm entrusting the safety of my client back into your hands. Even though I just met you both for the first time tonight, I have a feeling you'll do right by her." He gave a piercing look to Steven, "And to you, little one, I apologize for my behavior earlier. I was just very excited to finally meet the creator of the musk that I've smelled for so long."

"Uh…thanks." Steven didn't really know how to take that sort of compliment.

"And Officer Wolford?" Billy caught the wolf's eyes and held them. "You did not see me here, correct?"

Anthony could gather what the fox was getting at. "Yeah, yeah. We were never here. Don't worry, there will be no cops showing up to your yacht here." His tone softened as he admitted, "Thanks again…for taking care of Murana."

"My pleasure." Billy beamed, tipping his bowler cap in return and gently moving Murana into their arms. "It's alright, honey. You'll be safe."

Anthony wasn't sure what Billy had to do to keep Murana calm in her current state or to even gain her trust in the first place. All he could observe was her backward glances as they slowly walked her out until they couldn't see Billy or the boat anymore.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A_  
 _Thursday – 11:28 PM – Overcast / Steady Rain_

"And this…is your home!" Anthony said with gusto, turning the key in the knob and swinging the door open wide to reveal the grandiose apartment beyond, complete with grass flooring that seemed too good to be true.

Murana's mouth dropped open in shock as she looked wide-eyed all around her, clearly not recognizing any of it. "This is where you live?"

"This is where _you_ live." Steven corrected.

Murana held a paw to her breast, taking a few steps back. "No…no, this is all wrong. I don't own this. I don't deserve this. I'm a nothing, a nobody! I can't have this!"

"Shhh, it's okay! You can have it now." Anthony cradled her in his arms as she bumped up into him trying to escape back out into the hallway.

"It's about time you showed up, Murana! I've been waiting all day for your sorry ass!" a sassy voice boomed from the hole in the wall. Out popped a mongoose with nothing more than a single one-piece nightie on. She looked rather furious and intent on giving Murana a piece of her mind.

"Zoey, now is not the time." Steven advised, trying to give her a meaningful look so that she'd follow suit.

"No, I think this is the perfect time! She gets all upset at the truth of her mistakes and actions, leaves in a fuss and then disappears for two days, worrying her friends and family sick? That is not what a responsible adult does! She needs to own up to her-" Zoey was heated and it seemed like she wasn't going to stop until Steven grabbed her by the arm and nearly yanked her off to the side. "Hey! What are you doing that for?!"

"Steven, please see to our neighbor. I'm going to get Murana comfortable for bed." Anthony rolled his eyes as he ushered her towards the bedroom.

Steven could hear his mom's confusion, "Anthony, who was that? I don't understand. Why is she so angry at me?"

Steven turned back as the door closed. "Zoey, look, now is not a good time to be discussing family squabbles. Something is wrong with Mom."

Peering over his shoulder at where she had last seen Murana, she sighed and stared back at Steven with irritation, "Okay, fine. What's wrong with her? If she's just doing this to escape responsibility, then she's got another thing coming!"

"She's hurt." Steven said plainly.

"Hurt?" Zoey cocked her head curiously. "How so?"

Steven scratched his neck, "We're not entirely sure. She was found by AJ and Billy, delirious and wandering the tunnels near Sahara Square." Zoey nodded as if she knew who those two were. "She doesn't remember anything. She-"

There was a short scream and shattering of glass as both Zoey and Steven burst into the room. Before them was Anthony trying to get a struggling Murana under control, screaming bloody murder and trying to snatch at a picture that had fallen to the floor, its frame broken and glass splintered. Steven walked over to pick it up and saw two fully shaved and naked wolf pups huddled in a red wagon, the older hugging the younger from behind.

"Why do you have it?! Why do you have it?!" Murana screeched.

"What the hell is going on?" Zoey clambered up onto the bed and was getting ready to dispense one of her classic 'get-yourself-together' slaps for her.

After some thought, Steven came to a realization. "Of course she'd remember this. Anthony, she's regressed back, right? She's blocked out everything that's happened past the point where she's at now. This picture is still in her memory." He took the photo out and shook it a bit to get any stray bits of glass shards off and brought it over to the heaving Murana. "Mom, who is this in the wagon with you?"

Her eyes focused like an eagle onto the image. She stopped fighting against her husband and stared at it for a long time. "That's…my brother. He's dead. Why do you have our picture?"

"It's your picture, honey." Anthony exhaled, tired and wanting nothing more than to sleep. "You brought it in here when we got married."

Murana's face roved between the two of them. "What did you call me?" She asked of Steven.

"Mom. I called you Mom." Steven said, hope rekindling in his irises.

"No…that's…I'm too young to have a son and be married. You're just joking with me, right? Trying to get me to do things I don't want!" She began to struggle again.

This time, Zoey did smack Murana upside the head, which stopped her short. "Okay, I don't know what happened to you, Murana, but you're clearly not yourself. Even if you don't remember me, or Anthony or even Steven, the fact remains is that we won't hurt you. You are safe here. So how about stop treating us like the enemy and just let us do our jobs to protect you?"

That calmed her finally. "O-oh…okay." She said submissively. "I'm sorry for being trouble again for you guys. I was wrong. Please punish me."

"Punish you…what?! No, we're not going to do anything of the sort! Where did you get a crazy idea like that?" Anthony responded, finally getting off of her and just laying back on the sheets, propped up on an arm.

She slowly sat up, "Isn't that what happens to bad boys and girls? They get whipped and chained before losing food for the week?"

"Sweet tar and feathers, Murana!" Zoey gaped. "Where the hell have you been living where that's normal?"

"It's her past…" Steven said ominously.

Anthony caught onto his train of thought, "She never talks about it to me. She wakes up sometimes with nightmares. Remember earlier this week? It was one of those times. She's always been guarded with what happened to her when she was young, but I'm starting to see the demented nature of what she had to grow up with and I'm beginning to hate whoever did this to her more and more."

Zoey put out a paw for the photo and took a gander at it, "Well, when you see clearly what was done to these two pups, I can see why. So what happens now?"

Anthony regarded his wife. "Well, given her current…state of mind, I'm not entirely sure if it is appropriate for me to be sleeping in the same bed as her." This statement caused a very strong reaction. Murana tensed up, bringing both her legs up to her chest as she wrapped her arms around them. "Yep, definitely not a good idea." He concluded.

"Guess you got the couch!" Steven said smugly.

"Oh, and where will you be sleeping?" Zoey slapped his arm, causing him to rub it tenderly.

"The couch as well, of course." He looked shocked.

"Uh-huh, well my apartment is always open…if you want." Zoey gave him a meaningful wink.

"T-that's all right. I'll be fine just chilling with Dad here tonight." Steven smiled fruitlessly. The title caused Anthony to regard him oddly.

"You need to work on your lies more, little boy." Zoey booped his nose before hopping off the bed. "Let's all get some rest tonight. I want a full report tomorrow morning." She sauntered off, shaking her tail sensually to hopefully entice Steven to follow. It sadly didn't work.

"Come on." Anthony groaned, sliding off and standing up. "Let's set up our nests out there." He turned to Murana. "The bathroom is over there if necessary and if you need anything at all, please, don't hesitate to let us know. We're here for you."

She scooted up to where her back rump hit the headboard of the bed, "O-okay. Thank you." She tried her best to smile.

Anthony was grumbling the entire time as he pulled out spare blankets and pillows from the nearby linen closet in the corner of the living den. Spreading them out over both couches, he set up two bedspreads. Flopping down fully onto one couch, he draped his arm over his eyes as he made a loud murmur.

"Been a while since I've had to sleep out here." He reminisced.

Steven snickered, "Yeah, she was not happy with you that day, was she?"

Chortling back, "No, no she wasn't. It was worth it though, just for the humor alone!"

"You think she's going to be alright?" Steven anxiously asked, his eyes going back to her door.

"I hope so. Either way, it's best that she has family close by in case she needs anything." Anthony began to settle in a bit more, getting relaxed. Despite it being on the couch, this was far more comfortable being back home than in Nick Wilde's apartment.

Steven ruminated a bit on the day's events. "How do you feel about Mom being the Dark Flame Wolf?" He was gauging Anthony's stance on what they were going to do with Murana.

A deep rumble reverberated in Anthony's chest as he answered, "I don't know how I should feel. I'm still processing everything. I'm a bit stunned, honestly."

"You think we should report what happened?" Steven inquired, pulling the blanket over himself.

"Report what, exactly? The story already is weird enough as it is. No, I think we should just keep this to ourselves. She's home safe now and that's all that matters." Anthony grunted, rolling over onto his back as if that decided the matter. As an afterthought, he called out over his shoulder, "Good night, Steven."

"Good night…Anthony." Steven struggled. He still wasn't any good at calling him Dad. It would be a long road before that would be earned. Still, he had to respect his position in Murana's life, even if she didn't remember it right now.

It wasn't long before he could hear Anthony's snores. Steven tossed and turned and realized he just wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. Horrifying thoughts ran rampant through his mind as to what exactly happened to Murana these past few days. He hoped this temporary amnesia due to PTSD was temporary and that he'd get his wolf mom back. He wanted nothing more than to be curled up in her arms, spooning him as he fell asleep beside her like they did when he was growing up.

Steven couldn't stand it anymore. He had to talk to Murana one on one. Sneaking out from off the couch, he crouched low and snuck over to her bedroom door. Carefully twisting the door knob, trying not to make it clunk as the lock disengaged from the frame. He opened it slowly. He could see her sleeping form underneath the sheets. Her rate of breathing indicated she hadn't fully fallen asleep yet, probably still nervous about being in a 'new' place.

"Mom?" He whispered, taking a few steps through the grass inside.

"Who?" She bolted over, her gaze locking onto him instantly. It was quite startling the speed at which she did it that he froze in place.

"It's just me, Steven." He responded, seeing her visibly relax at this. "Can we talk?"

"Ok." She agreed simply.

He crawled up onto the bed and sat beside her, her larger form overshadowing his in bulk. He wanted to nestle closer to her, but decided it best to keep some distance from her so as to not scare her. "So you really don't remember me at all?"

Murana shook her head. "No, I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You rescued me a long time ago from a very awful place. They were using me, probably like they were using you." Steven figured they might have had similar pasts given what he knew of her. She was guarded even around him when it pertained to anything in her youth.

This shared experience seemed to lower a barrier between them as she scooted up to sitting. "So what happened to those who hurt you?"

"Well, you killed them." A look of horror and shock caused him to follow up quickly, "They were all bad men and most likely deserved it, given what they were doing to us all." She nodded glumly, her eyes lost in thought, probably trying in vain to remember this. "You saved me. You adopted me as your own son and we've been living together for most of my life. We love each other very much."

Murana buried her head into her paws, tears erupting now as she sobbed. "I'm sorry I don't remember anything! I don't know what to think!" She raised up her adult paw, "I see my body is huge, but I don't remember ever growing up! It's like I've lost a huge part of my life."

Steven's heart broke for his Mom. He sidled up and put an arm around her, laying his head on her bicep. She only tensed for a moment before melting into the touch. He let her cry into him. It felt odd to now be the one who comforts. There was many a time where she would do this for him as he cried into her arms, so to have it reversed was such an odd experience.

"It's okay, Mom. We'll get your memory back. Maybe something will happen and it'll all come back to you." Steven hoped wistfully.

"I'm sorry, you seem like an alright kid, but I don't think I'd ever adopt a skunk." Murana said truthfully, trying not to be offensive.

"First off, stop apologizing, Mom. It doesn't suit you. Second, you said the same thing when I first came to live with you. You actually didn't want a son then, but we grew on each other and in the end, we became family." Steven dreamily remembered the good times they shared.

"Sounds…nice." Murana nuzzled into Steven. Whatever was going on inside her head with her younger self, it was clear she was starving for some touch and affection. What horrors his Mom had to go through to get to where she was now. He acquiesced her nonverbal cues and snuggled up next to her.

"Please, I hope you don't feel it too weird of me if I ask if we can curl up and sleep together?" Steven cringed a bit, hoping this wasn't going to set her off.

He probably was about the size of her younger brother in that photo. In fact, he could see on the other side of her, laying face up on the bedsheet, was that picture. She had probably been staring at it this entire time. At length, she nodded in the affirmative. "I'd like that. Thank you."

Excited yet cautious to not ruin this moment, Steven got into position like he normally did, letting Murana mold herself behind him, wrapping her arms and legs around. He nearly purred with contentment with the warm, fuzzy feeling of his Mom enveloping him in her warmth and comfort. He had missed this when Anthony moved in. He wanted to fall asleep right then and there, but knew he needed to make sure she was okay with this.

"You doing alright? Does this bring back any memories?" Steven whispered back to her.

"No, but this is nice." She squeezed him tight, feeling much more at ease with having someone sharing the bed with her, especially someone smaller than Anthony. It was apparent that as long as she was like this, she would always be hesitant to be close to Anthony this intimately.

Steven reached down with his foot paws and played with Murana's. "What about this? We used to tickle each other all the time right before bed like this."

Murana giggled, but still shook her head. "No, but you're silly."

"I know." Steven tried to be chipper, but this was making him depressed. They did this almost every night when he was still resided in her home. How could something like this not bring back anything? A dreaded thought pierced his heart. What if she never regained her past? Would they have to establish their relationship all over again?

They just lay there for a time, her breathing getting calmer and more rhythmic as her body was shutting down to sleep. He was drowsing off himself, but an idea occurred to him suddenly. Without waiting for permission, he was going to try one last thing. The first fresh scent he smelt on that day leaving the musk mill was the scent of her foot paw. To him, it was the smell of freedom and it bound him to her forever. He would follow her to the ends of the earth for what she did for him that day.

Shuffling out of her grip, he sneaked down beneath the covers and curled himself up around her paw pads, wrapping his tail like a big ball of fluff around her legs. He buried his face into her paws and breathed in deeply. He loved his Mom and this was one of the very few things to be able to calm him down, even when he didn't have his medication to control his panic attacks.

Steven jerked his head up as he heard a gasp from her. Her toes flexed and felt out his face. He wanted to rub up and massage his cheeks into her toes, but he let her discover him with her foot paws. This went on for several minutes, her toes covering every inch. Her entire body shook as she cried out softly. He wasn't sure if something was wrong and he should stop. He flung the sheet back off of him and watched her with concern.

"Mom, is everything alright?" He asked tentatively.

Murana looked at him with deep wells of recognition in her eyes. It was like nothing had changed at all between them. She gave him that grin of hers he loved so much, "Of course, Steven. What happened?" She gazed all around her apartment, as if seeing it again for the first time. This was not the last place she remembered being at before she went missing.

"You were lost and now you're found!" Steven cried out as he jumped into her arms, burrowing his face into her neck. "I'm so glad you're here, Mom!"

A bit taken aback, but still holding onto him tightly, "I'm glad you're here too. How are you, little stinker?" She gave him kissing licks on the cheek.

"At peace." He said, breathing in a big, ragged sigh, a huge smile on his face.

* * *

 _There was a lot happening in this chapter and I needed to have it move at a decent clip without getting bogged down in the details of what happens between the multiple characters. I needed to quickly get across the idea that Murana had regressed due to PTSD, a condition that has seen some precedent in medical history and we get a glimpse into the type of abuses she grew up with as a cub. The hardest part of the chapter was the middle portion, to get the entire conversation flowing smoothly, so I addressed the altercation in the club above, the injuries that resulted, the situation with Murana, the relationship between each character and Murana and finally the plan ahead for what was to come to pass. It was quite the stumper until I realized I needed Billy and Steven to propel the entire plot along since AJ, Anthony and Ralph would more than likely just sit there and bicker among themselves as characters. Murana was also used as a device to continue the story moving forward. It was Berserker88's idea that the notion of her feet being the key to unlocking her memory. It was something so specific and so special to the two of them as mother and son that she would remember his face by touch alone in that sensitive part of her body: her hind paws. An odd way of going about it, but I realized the truth in Berserker88's words and went with that as being the trigger for Murana. With that, we have another day down. Where do we go from here? The answer may surprise you._


	14. Friday - Terror to the Max - Morning

_Sahara Square – Northern Sand Dunes – Three Miles Northwest of the Oasis Hotel & Casino  
_ _Friday – 9:13 AM – Sunny, Clear Skies / Light Winds_

Max Thrash awoke with a start. There was some rough clanging echoing throughout his bed chamber. He was situated separately from the rest of the orphans who were kidnapped this past Tuesday. Don Karnage was rather keen on keeping him isolated since he was influential in Murana's escape. He had simply followed instructions to infiltrate the command deck and shift course of the entire airship. It wasn't exactly his fault the crew members up there were uncooperative with Murana's order.

Then he got caught on his way to the rendezvous with her. She was acting a bit more weird than usual, but Murana was Murana and he was willing to help. Granted, they did not leave on great terms back at Tail Hollow, but he was happy to see her again on this strange ship full of angry and upset, old pirates. With the crashing of the whole place, he was locked away for the entire duration of their grounding, with only a few visits for stale bread and water to keep him alive.

He leapt back off the metal bed, which was bolted into the wall, as the door banged open, causing him to cringe at the loud reverberation of it. A rather large grey bulldog pirate with a ridiculous black top hat garnished with a purple feather came barging in. He was wearing rugged jeans, no doubt stolen, with a faded, tawny vest. Around his neck was a gaudy teal scarf that was haphazardly tied off at his left shoulder.

"You, kid! The boss says you gotta see him now! Get up outta ya bed, you lazy filth and follow me!" He barked.

This was Dumptruck. Max gathered his name from the 'affectionate' way the Don addressed him as such. Whether it was a compliment or an insult was left up to guessing, but he didn't seem to mind being called that. Max also figured he wasn't exactly bright either. He was smart enough to be aware of his surroundings and couldn't be snuck up on easily, and his skill with a musket or gun was actually quite scary to watch. One poor kid tried to escape and he nailed him dead from nearly 25 meters away on short notice.

"Come on, hurry up!" He bellowed again, making a fist and threatening with it.

"I would work a lot better if I was treated nicer." Max said plainly. He was never one to mince words with anyone, be it another peer or an adult.

"You'll be treated how we say so!" Dumptruck swatted Max's rear hard as he motioned him out the door, lingering just a hair's breadth longer to give it a small squeeze.

Max stumbled forward, shooting back daggers at the overgrown oaf, rubbing his rump at the painful slap. That was another thing of note about this minion of the Don's, he had very unique and young tastes. While most of the crew presided over and worked the other kits and cubs as manual slave labor, Dumptruck had other ideas in mind. Since their capture, he had taken two unfortunate cubs into his private quarters; they were not seen since.

With gun in hand, he escorted Max through the cramped corridors of the Iron Vulture. Max only heard the name once from another crew member, but it somehow stuck in his mind. It was even laid out in a fashion that resembled the interior of a bird. They went through an elongated porthole divider, which Dumptruck had to duck to fit through, and it opened out into what Max thought the 'belly' of the bird would be; the hangar bay.

There were massive girders set at intervals stretching across the expanse of the ceiling, holding up the framework of the entire structure. The far end of the bay ended in a point where the 'mouth' of the ship was, which could be opened for on and offloading of goods and materials. The bulk of the main deck was taken up by rows upon rows of crates and boxes, all tied down and securely fastened to the metal lining hooks all across the floor.

Looking down, there were dozens of other orphans like Max ordered in single file lines up and down the cargo bay. Each one was being tasked to gather valuables and other pieces of loot and pack them neatly into the opened containers. It wasn't just meaningless jewels or money, but also machine parts, screws, panels and other specialized electronics that Max couldn't fathom. These pirates were after more than just simple plunder.

"Get a move on!" Dumptruck drawled, butting the end of his musket into Max's back due to his stalling, making him stumble forward.

In a flash, Max used the forward momentum to fall through the opening in the catwalk railing, gripping the slotted walkway panels to swing underneath and up the other side. Twirling through the air, he pushed off with his paws from the opposite railing's handlebar and flew hind paw first into Dumptruck's face. He somersaulted ass over tail, dropping and clattering his gun down onto the main deck far below.

"You're gonna to pay for that, ya little runt!" He roared, rolling up a sleeve as he staggered up and began advancing on the indifferent Max, who was looking past him at someone else.

"Halt! Do not harm the child!" A boisterous voice rang out in the gloom. All ears recognized the voice and every eye went skyward to look at the Don. He was clucking his tongue, waggling a finger at the cheeky raccoon that had taken down his biggest officer. "This! This is why I still keep you alive, my little friend! Pure, raw potential!"

Karnage had not aged well between the time of capturing all the orphans and destroying Tail Hollow to now. He was showing signs of extreme aging, with wisps of white peppering his face and tail. A few unsightly wrinkles were visible along his snout, but he still filled out the frame of his swashbuckling outfit well. The only reason Dumptruck looked any better was because he recently had his 'fix.'

"But Boss…" A whining voice emanating from behind Karnage's form squeaked out, "Aren't you going to punish this whelp for insulting one of your men?"

A weasel-looking, brown dog with a crooked nose peeked out from behind the Don. He had a set of grimy goggles strapped to his head, its lenses fogged and cracked beyond repair. He wore a set of baggy work leggings and an open-front blue vest with interior velvet trim. Most concerning were the spiked gauntlets on each forearm that could do grave damage to any poor fool who got hit with them. Despite all this, he still looked emaciated, weak, and overall, not that threatening.

"Nonsense!" Karnage scoffed, drawing a dumbfounded look from both Mad Dog and Dumptruck. "May it be a lesson for this idiot in getting better at doing his job! Come now, Max!" He sauntered up beside the raccoon and placed a paw on his shoulder. "Walk with me, I wish to speak with you."

"Why haven't you killed me?" Max asked bluntly, allowing the Don to gently push him forcefully along beside him as they walked the length of the catwalk to the Captain's quarters at the back end of the Iron Vulture.

"Yeah, Boss! Why haven't you killed him? Can I take his soul? Please? Can I?" The screeching whine to Mad Dog's voice would make anyone's toes curl with its irritating nature.

"You will shut your puny, little mouth now, Mad Dog! I am speaking!" Karnage rounded on his runt of an officer. Satisfied that he had cowed his subordinate, he replaced his paw on Max's shoulder and continued as if nothing had occurred. "Straight and to the point, eh? You amuse me, Max. That is all. You have the potential to be a great pirate, fearless and cunning! You even have superb fighting prowess. Your form is flawless!" He reached up his other paw as if grasping for the heavens.

"Only because I'm using it to fighting others. I got beat up all the time back in the orphanage." Max flicked his tail, wondering when the Don would get to the point.

Stopping abruptly, causing Dumptruck to flop over onto Mad Dog in an angry mess of limbs and curses, Karnage went to a knee, flicking out a small dagger from his belt and glided it gently across Max's face. The cold metal did not cut the skin, but it was not comfortable to have it pressed so firmly into his face.

"Tell me, my little Max, are you afraid of death?" After some silence, he asked again, "Are you afraid of me? Of what I could do to you?"

Max shrugged, "I know you could kill me at any point. I know I am outmatched here. I will do what I can to stay alive, but I won't stop figuring out a way to escape from you. Murana would have wanted that." His eyes were steeled, staring down the Don with little emotion.

After a few moments, Karnage chortled a hearty guffaw, causing Mad Dog to laugh nervously, completely unsure of what the humor was. "Completely fearless! Ah, what a unique child you are, Max. Yes, Murana…one of my most prized possessions. Lost her twice now, I did. No thanks to you, Max." He leered as he bopped the raccoon on the nose with the handle of the dagger before sheathing it away into his belt and rising back up.

"So now will you punish him!?" Mad Dog skirled, wringing his paws in anticipation.

With a vexed look, Karnage took off one of his gloves and whapped the imbecile on the head furiously, punctuating each slap with a word. "Would you have patience, you idiot!?" Feeling a lot better after that outburst, Karnage casually slipped the glove back on as Mad Dog faltered and fell back a few paces, only to be caught by Dumptruck before he fell onto his backside.

Max knew those two, in fact many of the pirates on board were too small-minded to properly organize a mutiny against their captain, despite how much he mistreated them. The amount of pillaging and raiding he allowed them to do negated all thoughts of rebellion, distracting them from their overall living conditions.

"Now then, where was I?" Karnage mused, snapping his fingers. "Ah yes, Murana. Obviously, I have to make an example out of someone for this inexcusable lapse in security! I've already seen to your friends who assisted you in helping her escape. Dumptruck and Mad Dog attended to that."

Both of them sniggered at his words. Dumptruck began to reminisce fondly, "He was a squirmer and now I feels like a young pup again!" To try and irritate Max more, he puffed up his youthful cheeks with his paws. It didn't work.

"Now then," Karnage maintained, firmly prodding Max to follow him to his quarters at the far end. "I could make an example out of you, but I feel you have too much potential to be squandered just like that! Oh no! You might become just as precious to me as Murana was. She was brilliant and showed true aptitude for our craft when we kidnapped her so many moons ago!"

Opening the door with a flourish, the Don pushed Max inside, causing him to nearly trip over the lip of the doorframe. Inside the room was a very elegant bedroom boudoir. Opposite the four poster bed with violet drapery was an intricate navigator's desk, complete with a globe of the world, various sextants and other plotting equipment. The bed was located in the center of the room, underneath an extravagant chandelier that appeared procured from somewhere else and probably wasn't built for the Iron Vulture in mind. Port holes along the back wall let the early morning light into the dim room, which was lit by candles.

Cuffed in shackles and chained to one of the posts at the foot of the bed was a whimpering young wolf cub. He had been one of the three to assist Max in getting Murana off the Iron Vulture. Each one had a role to play and they were all supposed to rendezvous with her at their exit point; none of them made it except her. His clothes were ripped and his body oozed from various cuts on his body. He had been punished severely.

"Oh-ho-ho, you recognize him, don't you, Max?" Karnage strode over to the cowering pup and gripped a full fist of head fur, yanking him up to look at Max. "I find it…funny that she was able to convince four defenseless whelps to mastermind such a clever plan to not just attempt an escape, but to completely down my entire, beautiful airship! Let it be known that there is a price to pay for such insolence under my roof."

Dropping the wolf's head unceremoniously, Karnage reached into a side pouch on his belt opposite his dagger side and pulled out a small wooden fragment with an encrusted ruby carved into the center of it. Max had observed that every single pirate had a similar-looking utility pouch affixed to their bodies somewhere. Even Dumptruck and Mad Dog had one. This was the first time he had seen what was inside of them.

Twirling it between his fingers, Karnage promenaded back towards the terrified wolf cub, his eyes never leaving Max's. "There is a cost to being a hero, Max. May you watch and learn well!"

At this, he signaled his two minions to grab and hold Max in place. They each surged in and grabbed an arm and a leg, forcing him to watch what was to happen. It was useless to struggle and he did little to resist them, instead letting them hold him up for the macabre spectacle that was to occur.

Working the twisting ends of the wooden fragment, he then placed the glowing ruby on the child's forehead. It was so subtle at first, but a rising wail began to echo forth from the cub's throat. Continuing to hold the fragment up against his face, the Don leaned forward, kneeling as he did so. A sudden convulsion shook the entire wolf's frame as his chest puffed out, his head thrown back in a silent scream.

"This is what's going to happen to you, if you're not careful!" Mad Dog sneered, whispering malice into Max's ear.

It was faint at first, but Max could visibly see several wisps of a ghostly apparition rising from the cub's throat. His eyes rolled back into his head as his entire body trembled and shook violently, as if forcibly struggling against this invasive violation. More and more appeared before his face, coming out of his nostrils, eyes, ears and mouth. Every orifice was pouring out this undulating glimmer of a spirit.

With rising glee, the smoke-like form began flowing into Karnage's mouth, sucking it almost directly from the child. The wail turned into a squeal, rising louder and louder, his entire body contorted into some form of demonic possession, bound only by the chains that held his limbs. Then suddenly, it was over. The last tendrils of smoke left his mouth and the cub buckled to the floor like a wilted flower, his eyes vacant and unseeing.

"That feels absolutely marvelous!" The Don crooned, standing up and stretching, feeling like a new fox. The grey in his fur was gone and his face looked decades younger as his body reverted to that of a pirate in his prime. "And with that, gentlemen, his remaining years are all mine!" He cackled with maniacal perversion, inspiring his minions to follow suit.

For once during his entire time here in the Iron Vulture, Max was afraid. He stared down at the lifeless husk of a wolf cub. Whatever afterlife he might have believed in was forever gone. The wolf's soul was now annihilated and used to further the life of Don Karnage. How many people had these pirates ripped the lives from, denying them from eternal existence? This was truly a fate worse than death and Max was terrified.

Noting the raccoon's expression, Karnage pocketed the fragment back into his pouch and walked over to lounge in his captain's chair overlooking the entire room. "I see that I've finally gotten through to you, my young visitor." He enjoyed his small victory over Max, having now gotten him to emote something other than indifference. "As you can plainly see, I, the great pirate, Don Karnage, am immortal. We have lived for so long…decades, centuries, what does it matter? With every new generation comes new fodder for us to prolong our lives."

"You are our new treasures now!" Mad Dog squeezed Max's arm for emphasis.

"Our toys to play with!" Dumptruck whooped, letting his paws wander, causing Max to writhe.

Completely unconcerned with revealing anything to Max, Karnage prattled on, admiring his trophies and valuables scattered through his quarters. "We were always after treasure and wealth, but we stumbled across a most ingenious artifact, one that a certain, wretched bear was delivering. Stealing it, we figured we could hawk it for money, but we ended up finding a better use for it."

Resituating himself to sit more properly in his chair to better face Max, he expounded, "This totem was worth far more than just simple plunder, it could harness souls and extend one's lifespans at the expense of another! Over time, we realized that life and the thrill of the raid was far more important than any one piece of booty. The only way for us to enjoy that permanently was to take the lives of others. Our new mission became then to seek out those who could give us the biggest return for our investment."

"That's where yous comes in!" Dumptruck chuckled, gripping tightly.

"Kids, orphans, little whelps that wouldn't be missed." Karnage clarified. "You were the perfect vessels to gather and keep on retainer for when we needed you. With the many years ahead of your life left to live, we could steal them all and enjoy a new lease on living!" His elated expression soured. "And then you had to ruin it all by concocting this imbecilic plan to escape and waste three of our precious resources." He tapped his fingers on his armrest.

At a motion from the Don, both Dumptruck and Mad Dog dropped Max to the floor. It was sudden, but he managed to catch himself before stumbling over onto all fours. He stood up tall, but it was clear to everyone in the room that he was finally shaken. Karnage recognized Max for being a unique kit, one that seemingly had no fear. He couldn't really figure out why, but he was glad he had finally broken through his armored exterior at last.

Shaking a finger in the air as if an idea just came to him, Karnage smirked, "You asked why I don't kill you right away, yes, Max?" He rose up and walked over to the raccoon, looking down upon him as he gripped his cheeks between his fingers. "You are also leverage. I saw how Murana looked at you when I went to kill you that night. Others might see it as coincidence and she wanted to spare more children from being hurt, but I know her better. She reacted specifically to you. I'm going to use this connection, whatever it may be, to my advantage."

Letting go of Max's face and instead dragging him along by the ear back to his throne, he continued, "For now, you will be my protégé and pet. You will remain by my side at all times and do everything I tell you to do without question." He jerked Max's ear down hard, forcing him to sit beside him. "Is that clear?"

"Yes…Karnage." Max didn't bother to look at him, instead focusing on the dead wolf.

A harsh cuff against the head caught his attention. "You will acknowledge me when I speak to you and you will refer to me as Don Karnage!" Seeing as he would receive no more defiance from Max, he turned to his two lackeys, leaning back comfortably in his chair. "Now, since we are dead in the sand, as it were…" He chuckled at his joke, "We now have to change our plans and leave Zootopia as expediently as possible!"

"Uh…sir? What does expedee…dee…ently mean?" Dumptruck was concentrating really hard.

"It means 'fast,' you moron!" Karnage snarled. He turned to Mad Dog, "Now report! How goes the repairs on my precious Iron Vulture?"

Mad Dog looked a bit embarrassed and groveled before the Don in a very un-masculine way, "The entire engine is shut down, sir. We don't have enough required parts to fix it. The only thing working is the field generator."

Karnage groaned as he brought a paw to his temple, rubbing out his rising headache. He raised a leg and propped it up on Max's back, suddenly forcing him to be an ottoman without asking. "And we have nothing in our entire cargo bay that could be used to replace them?"

"No, sir…" Mad Dog sniveled, wringing his paws again. "We need to head out into this city to go find the necessary parts to fix the engines."

"And just where are we going to find these parts? Do we even know what they even are?" Karnage's tone was getting heated. Max kept quiet and listened to their conversation intently.

At this question, Mad Dog's face did brighten. "Oh yes, sir! I've been working all night on this!" He dug around in his back pocket and pulled out a crude collection of metal pieces and circuit boards, all attached to a rudimentary screen that had the green hue of a sonar display. Unimpressed with his achievement, Karnage gave him a look to explain himself. "This is an alloy detector to help track down the pieces we need. All parts have…um, tungsten in them, and this will guide us to what we could need."

"And you are sure that it works?" Karnage asked skeptically.

Mad Dog turned it on and flipped it around to show the Don. There were a few small blips on a circular display, one of which was not even that far to the northwest. "There are already a few tungsten hits in the city. We could send out a search party and gather them for you, sir!"

"Nonsense, I will lead the party myself!" He rose, buttoning up the top button of his vest coat, which was undone previously. "I can hardly trust you idiots with handling a bunch of kids from escaping, So, I will oversee this mission to retrieve the components!"

"Sir, what are compoo…poo…" Dumptruck began.

"Never you mind!" Karnage waved him off with a paw. "Max, come with me. Mad Dog, bring yourself and that device with you."

"What about me?" Dumptruck resembled his namesake with the look on his face.

"You?" Karnage regarded him for a moment, "Keep watch over the kids and ensure the rest of the crew doesn't let up on their discipline. We need to let these whelps know what it means to cross pirates. You have my permission to kill one," He raised one finger, "Only one kid, to ensure cooperation of our prisoners."

With a lopsided salute that Karnage promptly ignored, Dumptruck barked back happily, "Yes, sir!"

Snapping his fingers for Max to follow, he walked with purpose out of his room and down the catwalk, sidestepping to the stairs leading down to the main deck. "Mad Dog, bring some of my best men with us. We will need to create a diversion for those pesky people gawking at our ship. Do you think you have something to distract their attention while we head north to our first target?"

"Of course sir, I'm right on it." His nasally voice grated on the ears the happier it got. The lanky dog was off like a shot, yelling and raving at kids and fellow crew members like he owned the place.

Not even looking back, Karnage started talking to no one in particular, but Max knew it was for his ears only as he followed. "This was meant to be such a simple raid. Stay for a few days under cloud cover, steal a couple dozen kids to stock up and move on to the next town. You and Murana put quite a kink in my plans. But ah, such is life!"

Max trailed silently, looking all around him. The fellow orphans who were kidnapped with him and those from other places stopped and stared at them. Some moved back in fear while others were petrified to the spot as the Don passed by. Some caught eyes with Max and gave him dirty looks. It was because of him, they believed, that their friends who agreed to Murana's plan were no longer living.

It seemed like a very logical plan to Max. Murana went to sabotage the engines with some lookouts while he steered the Vulture off course with the help of another, hopefully passing it low enough for them to meet up and hop off out of one of the airlocks onto one of the great barrier walls bordering Sahara Square. However, one of the kits snitched, being afraid for his own life that they'd get caught and wanting some semblance of mercy or even reward from the pirates. He now lay dead at the foot of Karnage's bed, his soul gone.

The Don stood at the control panel adjacent to the main hangar doors, shaped to look like the interior of a vulture's beak. Pegged into the side by rusty nails was a hook row of goggles. He took down two and handed one to Max to put on. Without questioning it, Max put it over his head, moving his ears around so they'd be comfortable with the tight strap bordering his head. He rubbed out the lenses. It looked like they hadn't been cleaned in ages, and they casted a dusty sepia pall over all he looked at.

They both looked up at the rattling of the railing above as Mad Dog came down with two other cohorts. Karnage gave Max a sidelong glance as he softly spoke with underlying menace. "You are a smart lad. I like you, but make no mistake. If I sense even a hint of you trying to escape or foil my plans, I will kill you."

Max understood the threat was not at all bluster. The fox captain meant business and it was evident in the posture he took, standing alongside him waiting for his crew to catch up to them at the door.

Without waiting for a response, Karnage recollected, "You remind me of another promising protégé, one who could have had it all and would have surpassed me as captain of the Iron Vulture. Kit Cloudkicker, I think his name was. It's been so long ago, I can barely remember names anymore unless they were extraordinary." He sniffed without remorse, "His soul became mine too. Those days of looking for an heir are over now that I have the totem."

"We're ready boss! We can fire on your signal." Mad Dog grinned.

"Ready, men? Let us away!" He hollered, yanking the lever down as the entire structure rumbled with the opening of the door maw.

All the men in the hangar howled together in unison as static electricity rolled through the air, causing Max's fur to stand on end. A low grumbling was heard above their heads as arcs of light flashed through the air in front of them. They looked upon the vast expanse of Sahara Square. They could see the row of police cars and news station trucks lined up along the distant roadway, reporting on the new event happening with the Iron Vulture.

"Everyone, on me. To the mule!" Karnage commanded.

They leapt onto a tan, four-wheel utility truck that had no cover. It had room just for four passengers and had massive headlamps on the front for night excursions. There were no seatbelts, and the cushioned seats were deflated and ripped due to neglect and misuse. A rather stout pirate with an oddly shaped, horned helmet lifted Max up and tossed him in the back, sandwiched between him and another large pirate. The Don and Mad Dog were sitting up front.

Pressing a button on the front console to the right of the steering wheel, Karnage shouted into the intercom, "At my mark, fire into that crowd there so we can get through the field!"

"Roger!" A gravelly voice came back through.

With a single rev of the engines, they peeled out of the open bay door. Max turned around to see it slowly rising up after they had passed the tip. The speed at which they traveled was whipping up quite a lot of sand as the heavy-duty tires kicked it up. It was a good thing they had the goggles now. They were almost to the edge of the field, heading towards the great barrier wall when Karnage pressed the intercom again.

"Fire now!" He shouted.

The entire electric field disappeared for a brief moment as they barreled through where the malevolent barrier once was. Max noticed a lightning rod affixed to the top of the Iron Vulture behind them with a large radar dish. Arcing light flashed and sparked dangerously for a few seconds as a concussive boom was heard, and a streak of lightning blasted an entire contingent of police cars high into the air. Just like that, the barrier was reinstated as if nothing had happened, but what was left was the screaming of the crowds and a few mangled wrecks of cars on fire.

"Silly civilians!" Karnage laughed, causing all the rest to laugh with him as they drove onwards to the barrier wall, aiming for a tunnel.

The only one who wasn't laughing was Max.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – The Fox Den on Roaring St. – Against the Tundratown Border Wall  
_ _Friday – 10:48 AM – Sunny, Clear Skies / Light Winds_

Bystanders screamed and dove for cover as the mule roared down the street, Karnage not even bothering to care about whoever was in the way. Mad Dog skirled for the Don to stop as his device was blaring like crazy, the beeping at a fever pitch. Drifting into a sidelong park, completely blocking the entire road, they dusted off their coats and looked up at the squat, brick and mortar building butted up against the gigantic border wall with the visible, rising frost from Tundratown beyond.

"Doesn't look like much." Karnage commented, hopping over the door, not bothering to open it.

"It looks more like a dance club." Sadie inspected the sign, its neon light off during non-business hours.

Sadie was a round, squat pirate with a mustache that looked like a bushy science experiment gone wrong. He had a signature helmet with horns curving upwards from either side of it, which would have given him a menacing figure if he wasn't so ridiculous-looking. Despite being all gruff on the exterior, Max could tell he was highly insecure of himself and barked louder than he could bite to compensate.

"I know what it is!" Karnage snapped, not even giving Sadie the courtesy of looking at him. It was clear that he had no idea what a dance club was, but Max kept this to himself. "So are you sure what we need is in there?"

"I'm positive something with tungsten is in there, sir!" Mad Dog replied.

Karnage rolled his eyes before waving a paw to follow him, "Come on, we got a lot of ground to cover and not a lot of daylight! Let's vamoose!"

"Excuse me?" A tart voice demanded their attention. Standing in the road, just outside her car was an ornery porcupine with paws on her hips, shooting daggers at them. "You're parked illegally! You need to move out of the road, now!" She huffed.

Without blinking an eye, Karnage whipped out his pistol and blew her several feet off the ground, her body skidding past her vehicle upon landing. "Thank you, madam, for that lovely public service announcement! Now it is you who is also blocking the road!" He chuckled, causing the others to follow suit as he holstered his weapon and proceeded inside.

"Get a move on!" Mad Dog cuffed Max as he pushed him along behind the Don.

Max's gaze lingered on the dying porcupine, gasping her last breaths as she clutched her chest where the bullet had pierced her lung. Max knew Karnage was a better shot than that and he could have blown her head off without even looking, however he wanted her to suffer for her impertinence at accosting them. It would probably be several dozen minutes before she finally enjoyed the sweet release of death.

They surged into the structure, busting down the door with a nicely placed explosive. The knob zinged off from the eruption and crashed through a window across the street in an apartment complex opposite the club. Ignoring the gawking onlookers, the pirates fanned out and began searching the entire area, including the side tables covered by curtains.

As Karnage was observing his crew pillage the place, he wrinkled his nose. "Ugh, what is that awful stench?"

Max began to sniff as well. There appeared to be a slight haze to the entire dance floor, smelling suspiciously like skunk. Multiple stains of blood, vomit and other excrements littered the floor before them. It appeared that there was a huge scuffle here recently and the entire establishment looked closed for renovations as a result of whatever happened.

"At least the booze is still good!" Karnage brightened, padding over to the bar and swiping a few bottles for himself, pouring a few shot glasses full of amber liquid.

Seeing as he wasn't being stringently watched, Max began to wander around as well. The more he breathed in the putrid odor, the more it seemed familiar to him. He could recall a hint of it being on Murana, but he couldn't be certain. Could this scent be connected to her somehow?

With renewed determination, he began to break out two different scents within that musk. He was getting excited with the prospect that Murana could have potentially been here when he was bumped harshly to the floor by Mad Dog. He seemed to be intently monitoring his device to figure out where it was picking up the tungsten signature.

"Watch it, you little twerp." The gangly dog growled at him, raising his hand to strike him again.

"I'd watch that temper of yours." Max reminded, revealing a small smirk. "I do believe I remember hearing Don Karnage wanting to keep me unspoiled." He got up, rubbing his backside where he fell.

The fact that Max was not meeting his gaze was infuriating Mad Dog. He jabbed a clawed finger at the cheeky raccoon. "Just because you're the current favorite of the captain doesn't make you anything special. What were you before we picked you up? A good-for-nothing orphan, right? Lonely, pitiful orphan. Now you're the darling pet of the Captain and have his favor for the moment. Only I think you're still just a lowly trash panda, a lamb in a den of wolves."

Mad Dog leaned down until his nose was almost touching Max's, "Well, I'm his first mate and this is my operation. I don't like the way you've looked down on me ever since you stepped aboard. I'm above you. Better than. I'm a pirate, see? Roots in the crew since we were first founded by our great Captain, and you're just a pitiful kit scrounging for scraps."

With arms crossed, Max continued to talk to the pirate's ear. "The way I see it, if both of us were to fall overboard, I know someone would care about me. How about you? Based on what I've seen from how the Captain treats you, I think you wouldn't be missed one bit."

Mad Dog's eyes swelled as his pupils narrowed to slits. With spittle flying, he grappled Max's neck, slamming him to the floor as he ripped out his small totem fragment from his vest pouch and shoving it upon the raccoon's forehead. "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! You little twerp!" He snarled.

It was a bone-chilling experience, shocking Max to his very core. His entire body went icy cold as a swelling tug began flowing up from his fingertips, gathering into his chest and expanding up and out his throat. Stabbing daggers of pain punctuated every nerve ending in his body as pieces of his soul clung for dear life, his entire essence being forcibly removed by some unnatural power invasively reaching into his body and violating his personal space.

His whining cry was reaching a piercing wail as his fingers and toes lost all feeling when Karnage rounded the corner and kicked his first mate to the floor. Just like that, the entire effect lifted and a soothing warmth flushed back into his paws and limbs, like a warm blanket on a cold winter's day. Max lay shaken and gasping for air as his entire body was trembling with some existential dread.

"You stupid fool!" Karnage began smacking Mad Dog. "We need this boy for leverage when we find Murana again! He is not to be harmed unless I say so!" Getting his boot off the moaning dog's chest, he straightened up. "Unbelievable! I'm surrounded by idiots!" He paced over and jerked Max back up onto his feet. "Come with me. You are not to leave my side, pet! Did I not instruct you already on this? Kids these days!" He shook his head in disbelief.

As he was being dragged along by the paw behind the Don, Max finally made eye contact with Mad Dog for just the briefest of moments. The shared look conveyed only one meaning between the two: Max had won the argument. This caused the dog to seethe and grind his teeth as he watched the flippant raccoon trail after the Captain, acting all high and mighty as if he was the new favorite.

"I catch you wandering off like that again, Max, I won't stop him next time." Karnage looked at him with seriousness.

It unnerved Max a bit, since it seemed to be the first bit of concern for him at all since he was kidnapped. He wasn't sure if it was because he was a useful tool for Karnage and didn't want to lose his one bargaining chip in getting Murana to comply again, or that he was interested in keeping him as a promising pupil and pet. Given the idiocy of his crew, it was probably both.

"Men! To me!" He hollered from behind the wet bar.

"What you got, boss?" The tall, overly fat cat pirate boomed, lumbering over to peek over the counter.

"Something of great interest!" He crowed, kicking aside the standing mat behind the beer tap. Beneath it was a trap door that led deeper into the ground. Taking one last shot from the tequila bottle, he waved his crew on through. "You four take point and scout it out!"

Karnage brought up the rear as he nudged Max onward to follow Sadie down the dark tunnel. The obese cat took the lead and was bumbling along, speaking nonsense to himself as he admired the intricately carved corridor, seemingly cut directly out of the stone. The rest of the pirates seemed to ignore his rambling, evidently all used to this sort of thing with him.

"I wonder what tools they used to create this immaculate detail. Clearly something high powered with 5mm point precision to work the stone to this – HURK!" All eyes turned to the cat as his sentence got cut short.

"Hal!" Sadie cried out. "No! He hasn't had his fix yet!"

The plump pirate feline was impaled through the stomach. His eyes stared vacantly at the ground as he slumped over the battering ram of a rod that had seemingly swung down from the ceiling after he tripped through a wire bordering the entrance into the main cavern. It had gutted clear through him, bursting out the other side, shattering his spine. A slow trickle of blood began to drip onto the cold stone beneath their paws as smoke filled the air.

"We're not alone! Everyone, up against the walls!" Karnage spat.

Mad Dog had to grab Sadie by the collar as the poor guy wept over his fallen comrade. Slapping him up against the wall beside him, he looked out into the pervading gloom. He could barely make out a boat and some stairs leading down to it, but the overall cloud of smoke was getting thicker by the second.

A voice cried out in the pale cloud diffusing down past them through the hallway. "Drop your weapons and retreat back to where you came from! We have you surrounded and we won't hesitate to kill you all!"

"What are we gonna do, Boss?" Mad Dog yowled. "They got us surrounded!"

Karnage was sniffing the air diligently. "Silence, you idiot!" He took a few more puffs, before nodding to himself. "He's bluffing. There is only one of him and three of us."

"Four." Max reminded, his eyes glued to the draping form of Hal on the spike log.

Karnage looked down irritably at Max, "Very well then, pet. You go on out there and see if you can find us a safe passage down to that boat." He tossed Max the small dagger from his belt and then booted him forward, causing him to slip on the puddle gathering beneath the cat.

"I guess I will." Max said with some determination. He knew that whoever was hiding in this fog was no friend of Karnage and might even provide an opportunity to escape.

Karnage, keeping a keen eye on Max, aimed his musket at the raccoon while the others kept theirs pointing out towards the main opening. Shaking off the blood from his hind paw, Max stepped out into the pall and tentatively took his first steps towards the stairs. He could see a large shape resembling some sort of shack at the foot of the stairs and the boat moored on what sounded like an underground river, but everything else was hard to make out. It was deathly silent as he quietly made his way down the first ramp of steps.

"You better duck, kid!" A voice in front of him shook Max.

Seeing a rather large tube with an open barrel pointing directly at him, Max leapt to the side as the white fox pressed a button and launched a small rocket towards the entrance to his workspace. Cries from the pirates rang out as they dove into the cave, narrowly avoiding the blazing missile as it struck dead Hal straight in the face, exploding mercilessly and rocking the entire cavern to its foundation. Several chunks of ceiling began raining down and blocked off their avenue of escape.

"Fan out! Get this asshole!" Karnage boomed.

Max skittered after the silver tail of the fox scampering down the remaining stairs as gun shots rang out in the grotto. Pings could be heard ricocheting off the boat siding, and splinters of wooden railing spiraled up into the air next to his head as bullets found their mark around him. The pirates raised their battle cry as they thundered down the steps after them, blasting off rounds into the smoke, not caring who they hit.

"You have a death wish, kid?" The fox asked curtly.

Taking the cue, Max suddenly swapped directions and began fleeing towards the boat. The fox fired a net from the doorframe of his shack, snagging Mad Dog square in the face with it. The ball bearings wrapped around the blubbering pirate as he tipped over and crashed down onto the hard boardwalk beneath, cursing as he did so.

"Alright then, you sneaky rat." Karnage sneered as he sidestepped the next net. It sailed past him, landing harmlessly onto the boarded steps. "Let's see you try this on for size."

Dislodging a small, round object from his belt, he nicked it with his teeth, igniting the fuse before tossing it in the general direction of where he had seen the net launch from. He could tell he had the intended effect as he heard a small yelp and the pitter-patter of feet running. Closing his eyes and relying on sound alone, he aimed his musket and fired off two rounds. The second found its home as he heard a small yip.

Max was peeking over the edge of the boat he had hopped into right as the bomb went off. The entire shack blew outwards, causing millions of shards of burning debris to rain down onto the deck and penetrate the metal siding. Weaving back and forth to avoid the hail of death, Max raised his dagger in warning as the white fox in question flipped over the railing and landed onto the deck with him.

Coolly aiming a gun at Max's head, the fox calmly queried, "Are you with them or not?"

Knowing the time to speak was small at best, Max blurted, "I'm with nobody."

After a few seconds, the fox nodded, "Fair enough." Turning his attention to his burning workshop, he grimaced, "You better grab yourself a life preserver or something quick, because I'm not about to let them get my ship."

Max finally was able to look him directly in the eye to ask, "What do you mean?"

Without a word, the fox pressed a button on what looked like a detonator. "See you around, kid. Best of luck to you." Satisfied that the raccoon was going to do as he said, he turned back to the raging pyre and sighed, "Dammit, wish I could have finished that one last piece for Murana."

Max was already snatching up a preserver when his ears perked up at the name. Backtracking slightly, he called out, "Did you say Murana?"

The fox gave him a long stare. He went to say something, but Karnage had just finished crossing the plank up onto his boat and was taking aim at the fox. "Get out of here! Now!" The fox pushed Max away as he dove behind a roped-down set of cargo crates. Bullet trails followed, missing his hind paws by millimeters.

"Nah-ah-ah! You are a naughty, little fox to elude the great Don Karnage!" The captain cawed, flashing his pearly whites as he took great enjoyment in this game of cat and mouse. "If you come out now, I promise not to torture you…much, yes?"

Max heard a splash on the starboard side, the white flash of tail being the last remnants of the fox who helped him escape. Eye widening as the entire ship shook, Max took the preserver and heaved his whole body through it as he tumbled into the river below. Several mini-explosions could be heard within the boat as the entire riverway pounded with concussive force. More powerful detonations began to tear the ship apart.

The last thing Max could see before being swept with the current, around the bend and out of sight, was Karnage and his lackeys diving over the ship into the water. Whether they would catch up with him or not was debatable, but Max was now at the mercy of the currents and wherever the river would take him.

* * *

 _This was such an incredibly hard chapter to write. I knew the first scene alone would take up the bulk of the entire first third. I had to reintroduce Don Karnage, give readers a good sense of who and what he was all about, his capabilities and how formidable of a threat he would be. I also had to suddenly bring in two new characters so late into the story and characterize them in such a quick and succinct fashion to immediately get across to readers who they are and their relationship to Karnage and Max here. I also had to indirectly explain what happened when we weren't looking after Max and Murana got kidnapped way back in day 2. There was also the matter of explaining why pirates, who originated in the Disney TV show: Tailspin, could possibly still be alive during the time of Zootopia. Since the show had elements of magic and mysticism in it, I decided to go all the way and incorporate it in grand fashion. A lot of ground to cover in such a short span of pages and trying to cram it all in without going overboard was a gargantuan task. I spent many days trying to figure out the throughline to hit each major point before finally exiting the Iron Vulture, all the while fully demonstrating the personality of Max we barely got to see thus far. Whew, I'm just glad it's over. Don't ask me to do it again!_

 _The second scene by comparison was far easier to write. It just seemed natural to reinclude AJ's club and Billy Silva again just for fun, but it also made sense that a piece of high-tech gear that could fix the Iron Vulture would be at the underground workshop. So having Karnage and Billy meet was a very fun thing to script and provided a great excuse for Max to have an opportunity to escape from the Don and finally finish the rest of his own day in peace. Overall, I'm very proud of this chapter and how much I was able to pull off while still introducing so many new elements this late into the story. Hopefully you'll agree._


	15. Friday - Terror to the Max - Afternoon

_Downtown - Tail Hollow Orphanage – Happytown District – Corner of Deluge Ave and 34th St.  
_ _Friday – 1:30 PM – Sunny, Clear Skies / Variable Winds_

Max weakly crawled up the embankment, having been slushed out of the piping at the base level of the Rainforest District. He had lost track of all time as he was swept with the current, the rock sidings transitioning to concrete and metal and finally ending up in a tributary of the overall riverway that led him here.

He collapsed onto the muddy ground and rolled over to gaze up at the canopy rising high above him, with criss-crossing walkways and platforms interspersed by tram cars carrying their passengers to their various destinations. The air was so humid and stifling that even the murky water he was in felt refreshing and cool to him. While most other mammals would be repulsed by mud in their fur, Max didn't mind it at all. It was a stark, yet comforting reminder that this was his home and the place he belonged.

His breathing now returning to normal, he rolled over onto his paws and knees and worked his way up to standing. He looked around and tried to figure out where he was. He wasn't that far from the Tinderspire apartments. Using that Kopok tree as reference, he managed to work his way up to street level and began heading in a southerly direction that would take him back to the place he was more familiar with: Happytown.

Most civilians didn't give Max a second glance and swept right past him. It was as if he was invisible. Max was used to this, having dealt with it most of his life as an orphan. He was dirty, muddy and wretched-looking, resembling the trash panda slur that he hated so much. It didn't faze him at this very moment, so he kept trudging along. The few that did notice him had looks of pity, but still did nothing to assist him in his plight.

The pungent odor of soot and decay began to funnel into his nostrils as the familiar sights and sounds of Happytown filled his awareness. Max wasn't really paying attention where he was going, his muscle memory directing his feet on where to go. However, he did begin to notice several things that were different about his neighborhood that he had grown accustomed to. There was a lot more police tape, and scorched houses dotted his street because of the fire originating from Tail Hollow.

Max was so preoccupied staring at the glaring changes to the environment that he didn't realize the bum laying on the street next to him until he coughed loudly. Shaken a bit by the sudden sound, Max set off down the sidewalk again and could see his orphanage on the left a few blocks down. The debris sprawled out on the street was more visible than the front façade of the structure.

His focus on the building ahead, his paw kicked over a drum that rattled vociferously across the pavement before coming to a loud rest in the street gutter. His eyes were drawn to the makeshift drum set he had forgotten was there. Tucked away behind a trash dumpster were remnants of a series of metal buckets and trash can lids complete with a pair of metal rods he used as drumsticks.

Max had always loved music. It was one of the few things that brought him solace and comfort during his days being beaten and bullied in the orphanage. He would sneak out oftentimes and set up his venue just down the street to begin making some sweet beats to the rhythmic tune in his head. He would sometimes get the occasional ZBuck or coin for his work, but he really did it for the music. His cares would just fade away whenever he was at his drums.

Shrugging as he figured those days were long since gone, he padded on, his own mind deep in thought as he tried to recall the last song he had played on those broken cans. He didn't notice the maned wolf in his path until he literally bumped into him, almost knocking the tawny wolf off his paws. He struggled to regain balance on one crutch. He had on a loose-fitting pair of camo pants and white tank-top, red arms bare to the elements.

"Whoa, watch where you're going there, little guy!" The fox-like wolf admonished, giving the raccoon a once-over.

"It's alright." Max replied, not really thinking of a proper apology.

"It's alright? You just about bowled me over. I don't think that's alright. Where were you going in such a hurry, then?" The maned wolf was very interested for some reason in Max's affairs.

Regarding the crutch that supported one of the maned wolf's lanky legs, Max pointed out, "You're injured. Looks like from a nasty fall and quite possibly a fire." His eyes darted around to each of the singed patches of fur on Chris's arms.

"You're intuitive, but that still doesn't answer my question." The wolf seemed a bit put off with Max's seeming attitude.

"You mean the question of where I'm going?" Max was very articulate for his age, but he didn't really like speaking much to people to show it often. He pointed off towards the doomed visage of Tail Hollow, its roof blown off. "Going back to my home there."

The wolf glanced over to where Max was pointing and cringed, "Oh, buddy…yeah, you probably don't want to go back over there. They cleared that place out yesterday."

"I don't understand. That's my home. I'm going back." Max stated plainly, not getting the obvious implication.

Again, another look of pity from the wolf. "Look, kid, maybe I can help you find a place for now. The name is Christopher Guará. What's yours?" He held out a paw to shake.

Not really accepting the gesture, Max answered as he walked past him down the sidewalk to Tail Hollow. "The name is Max Thrash."

"H-hey!" Chris sputtered as the raccoon completely ignored him. "You can't just bump into someone, especially if they're injured, not apologize and walk off like that. Didn't your mom ever teach you any manners?"

This stopped Max in his tracks. He turned to the side and addressed the street, "I live in an orphanage, Chris. I had no mom to teach me these things."

Chris's ears flattened down at this, "Oh, right. Sorry about that." Recovering quickly, Chris caught up to Max using his lone crutch and hopping on one leg. "Look, maybe we got off on the wrong foot." He paused a brief moment to laugh at his unintentional joke. "I know what it's like living on the streets growing up and with no place for you to go back to. Things can get pretty hairy out here in Happytown. I can offer a place for you to stay, if you'd like."

Max continued on as if he hadn't heard the maned wolf. He stopped abruptly at the wrecked orphanage and looked up at it. "I'm already here."

Tail Hollow's sign was crooked, and part of it was completely blasted away. The interior was charred and the place looked more miserable than it previously was. There seemed to be no one currently living or working in the building since a jumbled mess of police tape and a sign labeled 'Condemned' had already been put up across the entrance. The place was no doubt slated to be demolished, and something not even resembling anything useful to the community would most likely be put up in its place, if anything was going to at all.

Max didn't budge when Chris put a paw on his shoulder. "Aw, man. I'm sorry about your home, but you can't really come back here. If you want, you can stick with me for a bit until we find you a place." The maned wolf offered sincerely.

Trying to logically think it through, Max figured that if Tail Hollow had been shut down due to the pirates ransacking it, he and all the other kids stolen were off the grid. He doubted that anyone would miss or care about paperwork at this point for getting him or any other missing kids adopted.

With no legal restrictions now binding him to the orphanage, he could go and find the mom of his choice. Sure, she did seem to have a busy life and probably wasn't the best alternative at the moment, but lacking any other options, she seemed to be the only choice.

"I'm going to find Murana then." He nodded, confirming to himself this course of action. "At the very least, I think she would give me a place to stay for a while."

Chris's fur ruffled, "Excuse me? I just offered you my pad to crash at."

Max finally turned to the maned wolf and addressed his chin, "Chris, you seem like a nice guy, but I don't know you." He moved to say something further, but thought better of it, deciding instead to just nod his head and begin walking down the sidewalk.

Chris just grumbled his irritation at this obstinate kit, "Again? I'm trying to be nice here, because I know what it's like to be abandoned without a home to go to. Granted, I didn't really get myself into a better space, given gangs and all, but I still managed to scrounge a living. That and…wait, did you say Murana?"

Although he didn't stop walking, Max's ears did flick back towards Chris, "Yeah, probably no one you know. I'm sure there are a lot of mammals named Murana."

Chris seemed immediately interested, "How about many wolves named Murana?"

That got Max to stop twice now, this time pivoting around to look Chris directly in the eye. "Murana Wolford?" He queried, his placid expression never wavering.

Although he was doing his best to hide it, Max could tell Chris was hiding a shimmer of exhilaration, "And you know where she lives? Is that where you are going?"

Max shrugged before continuing down the street, "Not really. I'm sure I will figure it out one way or another." He put a paw in his pocket, took out a library card and flashed it back at Chris. "She gave me this. On the card it has her as my sponsor. If I go to the library in question and claim to be her adopted son, especially since my name is on the card, they should have her address on file and give it to me."

Chris leaned on his crutch as he checked his watch, "Well, unless you plan on waiting until tomorrow, the library is closed on Fridays. Didn't you know?" The wolf couldn't help but smirk at this.

"I didn't." Max admitted.

He was always taken to the library by Murana during a few of her visits, but he never really bothered to pay attention to their schedule. If she ever took him on days other than Fridays, it never really mattered to him. He was far more concerned with spending time with her, hoping beyond hopes that she'd finally adopt him and have someone to call Mom. She was his best chance at getting away from the hell hole that was Tail Hollow, and now his easiest option to find her was denied for today.

Chris snapped his fingers, "Tell you what, I can do you one better." Trying to stabilize himself on one hind paw, he dug around until he found his cell phone. Flipping it open, he began tapping keys to locate the contact of choice. "I actually happen to know Murana's son. He works with me at ZNN."

This got Max's attention. He knew Murana had another son, but he barely knew anything about him. The subject just simply never came up in conversation, nor did he think to ask it. "ZNN? What's that?"

Chris just blinked, baffled this raccoon wasn't aware of the place he worked at. "Zootopia News Network? ZNN? Nothing ringing a bell? Didn't Tail Hollow have any televisions or computers to stream the news?"

"We're in Happytown, Chris." Max stated flatly. "I don't think Tail Hollow had any money for that. Besides, I wasn't interested in the news anyway."

Chris winced at his error. He should have known better, having been raised by his fellow gang brothers here. Living in the city at a reputable job had spoiled him something fierce. "Ah, right. Well, the person you are looking for, Murana, right? Her son is my colleague. We're friends and I can get you in contact with him."

Max was staring oddly past Chris, which caused him to turn around. Seeing nobody there, he looked back to Max, who was still gazing beyond as he spoke, "Why would you help me? You don't even know me."

"Do you always do that? It's kinda wigging me out a bit." Chris pointed out.

"What is?" Max wasn't really sure where Chris was going with this, and he still hadn't answered his question.

"It's like you're talking to everyone and everything but me. It's starting to get on my nerves." Chris was being patient with this kit, but there were certainly a lot of oddities about him.

Max's tail and ears drooped at the accusation. "I'm doing it again, aren't I?" He tried extremely hard to look Chris in the eyes, but it was stressful to maintain eye contact for any length of time. "The Matron called me 'special,' but the rest of the other kids called me retarded or dumb. There's something supposedly wrong with me where I don't always…say the right things or do the right things. I wasn't really wanted in Tail Hollow, but no one else would have me."

"Except Murana?" Chris was started to put the puzzle pieces together.

"Yeah, except her." Max stared at Chris's tanktop. "You never answered me. Why are you helping me?"

Chris scratched his chin a bit before advancing a few hops towards Max, "Let's just say we have a mutual interest in finding Murana, and since I'm a good friend of her son, I think we can help each other. May I?" He held up and shook the phone a bit.

Max nodded. "Be my guest."

Chris acknowledged him as he speed dialed Steven's number. He kept his eye on the raccoon, who just stood there and watched him with eyes nearly unblinking. Max certainly was not like any other cubs or kits he had encountered in his life. That was for sure. Turning to the side slightly, he held the phone up to his ear until a youthful voice picked up the phone.

"Hey, Stevie! Buddy! It's me, your pal, Chris!" The wolf's face became really animated as he talked into the phone.

Max could barely pick up what was being said by Steven at this distance. "What do you want, Chris? Now is really not a good time."

"I'm sorry, but I got a favor to ask of you! Can you give me the address of your mom's flat? I can show up there and tell you what's going on." Even Chris knew this was a weak opening to the request, but he hadn't really thought it through how he was going to get the information out of Steven.

Steven's voice was already guarded, "I don't think that's possible right now. Why do you want to know?"

Grimacing at how badly this conversation was going already, he sheepishly smiled at Max, "Well, I have this raccoon here saying he was looking specifically for your mom. He doesn't really have a home anymore and I was wondering if you might know anything about this?"

"I don't know of anyone who could be…wait, did you say raccoon?" After a grunt of affirmation from Chris, "Ask him if he used to live in Tail Hollow!" Steven's voice had a twinge of excitement to it.

"I don't have to! I already know he lived there. He doesn't now, but that's why he is looking for Murana. I'm guessing she was planning on adopting him or something?" Although it was never stated, that was the best assumption Chris could come up with.

Both Chris and Max could hear a nervous giggle emerge from the phone speaker, as if Steven had a small giddy attack of something. Suddenly, an older, stronger voice boomed through the phone. "Steven, who is that you're talking to?"

"It's Chris, Mom." After a pause, "Christopher Guará? From ZNN?"

"Get off the phone now, Steven. We're leaving." The female voice commanded.

Steven's voice lowered to a small hush, "Okay, Chris, I don't have much time. The address is Den 23A in the penthouse floor at the Red Lion Apartment Suites." His voice continued to speed up; as it appeared he was being forced to hang up immediately. "I'll put my key up on the sill of the door for you when you get here. Just keep him there until we get back and please…don't touch anything!"

"Stevie, you know me! What kind of wolf do you think-" The phone clicked off. Chris stared at it for a few seconds before snapping it closed and dropping it into his pocket. "That could have gone better, but at least we now have an address, which is what you wanted."

"Thank you for doing this." Max bowed his head, completely sincere in his appreciation.

Adjusting his crutch under his arm, Chris waved a paw to dismiss the formalities, "Please, I'm good friends with Steven. If it's true you were going to be adopted by his mom, then that makes you my friend too!"

"I guess." Max seemed unenthused. Chris couldn't tell if it was how he was feeling or if it was because of his 'special' qualities that he had referred to.

Hobbling along beside Max as they made their way down the sidewalk, he reached over and patted him gently on the shoulder, "I don't normally believe in fate, Max, but I think we were meant to find each other today. I think we're going to be good friends."

"If you believe so." Max rejoined.

Chris scowled at the raccoon. "You really need to work on your people skills."

"Sorry." Max intoned.

* * *

 _Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A  
_ _Friday – 03:41 PM – Sunny, Spotted Wisp Clouds / Variable Winds_

Even though Max didn't show it outwardly, he was in awe at the majestic place. A luxurious tribute to utmost decadence, the Red Lion Apartment Suites was a stereotypical place for the powerful and wealthy. He could scarcely believe that Murana lived in such a grand establishment. Even Chris seemed impressed and gave a low whistle as the bellhop gave them an irritated look and opened the door for them reluctantly.

The floors were of polished tile, the vaulted ceiling held up by marble pillars shaped like mammal heroes of old. The scintillating glass chandelier high above them moved and undulated in a pulsing rhythm as its crystal rings moved up and down its length to plaster the entire room with a menagerie of rainbows. The extravagant furniture placed in the foyer, clustered around a stone fireplace, only served to reinforce its reputation as a place of indulgence.

"May I help you…er, kind sirs?" The dhole service clerk asked, being quick to notice they were out of place and moved in to intercept them.

Grabbing Max by the paw to urge him to follow, Chris beamed a toothy grin as he tottered along on one crutch. "Don't worry! We know where we're going!"

Without waiting for a response, he tracked their dirty footprints across the primary vestibule, much to the chagrin of the host. Flouting the judging looks of those around them, they finally made it up the steps. Chris grumbled about wishing Max had helped him up the stairs, but the raccoon was as oblivious to this need as expected.

Reaching the elevators, Chris pushed the up button and waited for the cabin to arrive. "So I take it you've never been here before?"

"Not once." Max was continuing to look all around him.

"Me neither." Chris said out of the corner of his mouth.

As the sliding doors opened, they funneled into the fancy elevator, complete with an installed television that showed off advertisements to the various amenities the suites had to offer its tenants. They turned their backs to the TV and gazed up at the rising floor number, counting higher to the penthouse suites on the upper levels. They stood awkwardly side by side, fidgeting and flicking their tails as the music from the speakers above droned on softly.

Chris broke the silence first, still facing straight ahead, "So…did Murana visit you often?"

"A few times." Max said succinctly.

"What did you all do when she came by?" Chris was curious now about this wolf who was a cold-hearted vigilante, yet had the time and patience to spend her days with this raccoon.

"We did stuff." Max responded curtly.

Chris's hackles bristled. These short responses were getting irksome. "Did she say anything about where she worked and what she did?"

"Not really." Max yawned, wanting the conversation to be over.

Chris had to look down at the raccoon just to make sure the kit wasn't messing with him. It turned out he wasn't, he was completely calm and not even aware he was vexing Chris. Trying a different tack, Chris smiled as he posed haughtily on his crutch. "I met her a few times myself. She's quite the force to be reckoned with."

"I guess so." Max agreed.

Chris looked put off. He was at first excited to be meeting the potential, future brother of his best buddy, Steven, but now it seemed like Max would be nothing like the fun, easy-going skunk of a friend at ZNN. What was more concerning was that connecting these two was Murana, and even then Chris wasn't entirely sure if either one of them knew of her moonlighting as the Dark Flame Wolf. Steven possibly, but Chris didn't want to accuse his buddy like that just yet.

The elevator doors opened and they silently walked out together. They navigated the suite numbers until they came to Den 23A. Furtively glancing at each other, they could hear some loud slaps with the occasional moan. Unsure of what to make of it, Chris rapped on the door and awaited a response. The sounds ceased for a brief moment before resuming. Knocking a little louder, they finally received a more firm response.

"Who the hell is knocking at the door?" A gruff, male voice boomed. It was obvious he had said it loud enough for Chris and Max to probably take the hint and shove off. In a more hushed tone, "I thought you said she'd be gone for the next few hours?"

After a few moments, the slapping continued, to which now Max banged on the door and kept banging until a tiny, female voice bellowed, "You freaking kidding me?!"

A small thump was heard followed by a lot of pounding paws as the door flung open, revealing an extremely naked mongoose. "Oh geez! My eyes!" Chris literally had a spastic attack as he flung himself into the nearest wall, covering his face with his arm as he stumbled trying to gain some distance from the nude mammal.

"What the hell is your problem?" Even the mongoose was surprised at this violent reaction.

Max regarded the hyperventilating maned wolf with some degree of interest before turning back to the mongoose, "I'm Max. I'm here for Murana."

Her eyes snapped back to the raccoon, "And you are?"

"I already said my name is Max. What's yours?" His eyes were fixated on anywhere but her face, chest or nether regions. Even he knew that it was impolite to stare at such places.

"Zoey." She responded without thinking. Shaking her head, "What do you want with Murana?"

"Can we please get back to fucking?" The wolf sprawled out on the couch behind her growled.

"Not now, Trevor!" She roared back.

"I'm looking for Murana. She's…looking for me too." Max didn't really know how to really state what it was he wanted to say to Zoey. So instead, he flipped up his library card and handed it to her.

"Please tell her to put some clothes on." Chris whimpered, now slumped down with his knees to his chin, face in his paws.

Ignoring the maned wolf, Zoey looked over the card. It was to a library located in Happytown. What was more interesting was the fact that not only was Max's name on it as the benefactor of the services rendered, but Murana was his sponsor. She scrutinized the raccoon again, and realization dawned on her face.

"Hey, you're that raccoon she was looking to adopt!" Zoey's eye lit up with delight.

"You know me?" Without warning, his eyes shot open and his body went rigid as the mongoose surged in and gave him a huge hug. Max squirmed against Zoey, her warm body pressing up into his with this unexpected show of affection.

Realizing her brazen forwardness, she backed up and smiled, "Sorry about that. I just wasn't expecting something like this to ever happen. I mean, I heard about you from her the other day, but I didn't really think you'd actually come here on your own to find her. Wait…weren't you supposed to be in an orphanage? How'd you get them to let you go?"

"They didn't." Chris responded for Max, his eyes trained directly on the ceiling of the hallway. "Tail Hollow was destroyed and he has no place left to go to."

"Does Murana live here? Is she here?" Max persisted.

Zoey gritted her teeth, looking back at the muscular wolf in the den, his expression clearly indicating he was just about done with this whole debacle. "Well, you see…you just missed her a few minutes ago. She headed out with her family to deal with a few things." Even though this was undoubtedly the raccoon Murana was going to adopt, she still wasn't sure how much she should say.

Trying his best to avoid eyesight with her chest, Chris focused on her face, "Is it possible we could stick around and wait for her to come back?"

Her stroppy expression turned firm, "That's not exactly possible. Things are a bit complicated and I was kind of in the middle of something."

"If this is her place, what were you doing on that couch with that wolf?" Max asked innocently.

Zoey's eyes ratcheted back to him, "Wow, you're forward. I'm just housesitting for Murana and what I was doing is none of your business!"

"He's a growing boy, tell him!" Trevor suggested, now finding this whole situation hilarious.

"Not helping!" Zoey fumed, shaking her head at the lout. "Look, I'd like to help, truly, I would. However, I was under strict orders not to let anyone into the apartment until she returned."

"Well, can't we just wait out here in the hallway or something?" Chris still seemed beside himself due to the blatant lack of modesty from this mongoose.

"No…that would be rather awkward." Zoey scrunched her nose at the prospect of these two standing outside the penthouse door listening to her and Trevor.

Chris's ears perked up, "Why? Is there a rule against waiting here outside in the hallway?"

Zoey groaned as she facepawed at the naivety of this maned wolf, "We were having sex! I'm going to have sex! You happy now?! You want to come in and watch?!" She thrust a finger back towards the den as she stared down Chris.

"Ahhh, no! Please, don't make me do that!" Chris buried his face back into his knees again.

"Hey, that's one of my kinks!" Trevor tapped a claw to his chin.

"And you're about to lose the rest of them in just a second!" Zoey rounded on him.

"So…you're house-sitting for Murana and you're having sex in her own home. Was that part of the orders she gave you to do?" Max had a curious look. He was exploring the room behind Zoey as best he could from the doorway.

"No! I mean, that wasn't part of the…you know what? Fuck it. I wasn't doing anything right now!" Zoey threw her arms up in the air in exasperation. "You might as well throw a cover over yourself or something, Trevor. This is going to be a minute."

"Sure thing, toots." He sniggered as he tossed the throw from the back of the couch over himself, settling in to get comfy at the ensuing conversation.

"Anything I can assist with?" A calm voice echoed down the hall as all of them jumped at the sudden introduction of a spectacled otter. Taking his glasses off briefly to rub out a smudge on his left lens with his shirt, the otter waddled down the hall towards them.

"Freaking hell! Who else in this damn city wants to show up at our doorstep?" Zoey grumbled as she left the doorway to go at least put on a thigh-length shirt to finally attain some form of modesty. By the time she returned to block the entrance again, the otter had already reached them and was giving the quivering maned wolf a concerned look.

"Is he going to be alright?" The otter gestured to Chris.

"Apparently not. It seems like he's never seen a naked female before in his life." Zoey rolled her eyes.

"Well, it's a good thing you're not my type." The otter joked, adjusting the glasses on his little snout.

"I'm sorry, who are you again?" Zoey snarked. "You're like the third weirdo to show up at our doorstep to supposedly watch me ride that fine specimen of wolf behind me."

"I'm Ronald Latrinae." The otter cleared his throat, tightening up his tie and smoothing down his blue suit coat. "I'm Mrs. Wolford's secretary at the Lemming Brothers bank. I've only been working there for a few days though."

"And why would her secretary be here, of all places? Didn't know she took her work home with her that'd she'd require any assistance from her secretary." Zoey was getting annoyed now and her impatience was showing.

"I was wondering if she was in. She's not been at work for the past couple days, and you have no idea how hard it was to track down an address that is unlisted in the yellow pages." Ron chuckled amicably. He went to ruffle the head fur of Max, only to be met with a pointed look that caused him to back off from that action.

"Like I told these two yahoos, you just missed her. I'm house-sitting and nobody is to be allowed into her apartment without her say-so." She put a sassy fist on her hip as she regarded the three of them, "And frankly, it is getting a bit too crowded all of a sudden, and I'm not liking it one bit."

Ron looked slightly flustered at this news, "Do you have any idea when she's going to be back? This is very important."

"Who knows? She never said!" Trevor chimed in helpfully from the background.

Zoey's brows lowered, "Whatever!" She tried her best to smile at Max, "You seem like a good kid, but right now is just not a good time. I'm sure either one of these nice, fine gentlemammals will be able to assist you for the evening. Check in tomorrow and see if she's back. Until then, don't knock again. I will be ignoring you all."

She gave each a singular glare, making sure each one understood her intent. Without another word, she slammed the door in their faces. Within a few moments, they could hear the resumed slapping sounds and excited giggling. Ron and Max looked a bit put out, their eyes flattened and faces downcast. Both of their shared hopes of finding Murana were dashed.

"That was quite rude." Ron prickled, propping his paws on his waist.

Sensing that the lewd mongoose was finally gone, Chris peeked out from between his knees and noted the closed penthouse door. "Phew. I guess better luck next time!" Seemingly back to his old self, Chris used both the wall and the crutch to get back onto his long good hind paw. "Where did you say you were from again?" Chris addressed the otter.

His gaze lingering on the door a moment longer, he looked up at the maned wolf. "I'm Ronald Latrinae, Mrs. Wolford's secretary. Actually, I'm not sure anymore these days since she's never around."

"When did you see her last?" Chris edged forward with a crutch-assisted hop.

Ron beheld the two of them with interest, "And who is asking? As her secretary, it is also my business to know who comes to call."

"Isn't that only at her job?" Max reasoned.

The otter shot the raccoon an odd frown, "That's true, yes. However, since it is clear you weren't welcome at her own place of residence, I have to call into question whom you are and your intentions."

"Excuse me? What makes you-" Chris began, pointing a finger at the otter.

"That's fair." Max interjected, his expression hard to read. Without waiting for either to react, he continued, "Name is Max Thrash. I'm an orphan from Tail Hollow who is looking for Murana because she was thinking of adopting me."

Nonplussed at his response, Ron had to reorient himself in the conversation, "That certainly does explain a lot of things, but curious why you'd come here all of a sudden. Are you adopted already?"

"No. She didn't adopt me. Said she couldn't at the time, but I'm here now." Max explained briefly.

"I don't think that's how adoption works." Ron raised an eyebrow. He turned to Chris, "And you? You with Max here?"

"In a matter of speaking, yes." Things were getting stranger by the minute for Chris. He was looking for Murana. Max was looking for her. Now this otter was too. So many things seemed to be revolving around this mysterious wolf who ironically enough happened to be the mother of one of his friends. "Since I knew Mrs. Wolford's son from work, I figured I could help Max find out where she lived."

Ron folded his arms with unease, "You do know that even if you are a friend of the family, it is still quite a breach of privacy to bring strangers to a person's home."

"Even if she was going to adopt him?" Chris reasoned, leaning forward on his crutch.

"Even then, it still isn't standard protocol." Ron was calm to Chris's agitation.

"What about you?" Max pointed at Ron's tail, drawing a confused squint from both of them. "You said you've only been working at the bank for a few days. I don't think you would know her well enough to be coming to her house for business."

Ron marveled at the boy's intelligence. "You are a smart one!" He beamed at the raccoon, sulking only when the expression wasn't returned. "As I said, I'm new to the job and she hasn't been around for several days. Being the CEO of a prestigious bank, that does raise a cause for alarm. As her secretary, it was my duty to figure out what had happened to her or if I needed to file a police report. The least I could do was track down where she lived and stop by to see if she was sick in bed or something."

"So now what do we do?" Chris looked balefully at the locked door. "Ms. Skank in there won't even tell us where Murana is. Now we got nothing else to go on!"

"Her named is Zoey." Max corrected, drawing a glower from Chris.

Ron scratched an itch on his neck as he considered, "Barring the fact your presence here is highly unorthodox, what was your original plan?"

"I bumped into Max here back in Happytown. His orphanage had been destroyed recently and he had nowhere to go." Chris began, drawing a look of pity from Ron. "Since I happened to know the son of the wolf he was looking for, I figured one good turn deserves another and I decided to help him find her."

"That's very admirable of you, and doing so injured no less!" Ron complimented, gesturing towards the crutch Chris was leaning hard on. "How did that even happen?"

"This?" Chris looked down at his injury, taken aback at the sudden question. "I…uh, ran into a criminal the other day and managed to escape just in time." He recovered.

"That's unfortunate." Ron nodded. "I'm glad for your safety then." His attention focused on Max. "I've got an idea. If you don't mind hanging out with boring old me, you can come stay at my place for the time being until we can locate Murana and get this whole business sorted out. It's no trouble at all."

"That's very generous of you, but I think I can take him from here." Chris seemed adamant about his resolution in his responsibility over Max.

"I think I'm going to go with Mr. Latrinae here." Max took a few steps over to stand beside the surprised otter.

"What? Why?" Chris's mouth was hanging open.

"Mr. Latrinae works with Murana every day. He will probably see her soon. If I am with him each time when he goes in to work, I'm bound to see her one day." Max laid out logically.

Max didn't like lying to Chris, but it seemed the best solution for now just to get away from the overly friendly maned wolf. He seemed a good guy, but he couldn't trust him or anyone else with what he knew about Don Karnage and how Murana was some sort of masked hero. He didn't know where she was since her escape from the Iron Vulture, but he knew he couldn't have Chris tagging along wherever he went to look for her. Ronald seemed a far better proposition to be with. Max might be able to more easily slip away from him.

Chris looked like he was pouting, "Fine, kid. I thought we were cool. If you change your mind, I'm living near her son, Steven, down by the Docks. I'm in building 3405, apartment A115, across from the boardwalk. You can't miss it." He shifted sideways, looking askance at the raccoon. "I hope you find her, Max. I really do."

Shaking himself from head to tail, Chris shuffled off down the carpeted hallway back to the elevators. Max dawdled a bit until the maned wolf was out of sight before directing his attention to Ron, who was observing him intently. The intensity of his gaze was making Max really uncomfortable, and he shifted uneasily in place as he looked away obviously.

"I can't imagine what you're going through, Max. A kit without a home, I can almost relate." Shaking his head as if breaking out of some internal rumination, Ron focused more directly on him. "I'll take you out to some dinner, how's that? I know a fantastic noodle place just down the road we can try. You up for that?"

"Sure, I guess." Max shrugged.

Clapping his webbed paws with excitement, Ron smiled, "Capital! Very well, I will lead on."

Max followed along behind Ron, who seemed to be humming to himself. He was quite agile on his feet, and Max had to keep pace with the surprisingly fast otter. He didn't seem to be too attentive to his surroundings though, and most likely would be very easy to slip away from. Max just needed an opening.

* * *

 _Despite this day being all about Max and his perspective, the first chapter of his day was primarily with setting the stage for the villains and expositing their plan, motives and lethality. I did my best to give Max his personality and page-time, as it were, even if he got swept along with the plot. Here, in this chapter, I could really let loose and focus solely on Max and his interactions with several known characters we've seen throughout the story. So far, we've only seen him interact with Murana, so we never got the full measure of his special needs. Here, it is on full display with Christopher, Zoey and Ron. This chapter was quite easy to write compared to the last. All conversations seemed to flow quite smoothly, recapping for both the characters involved and the reader what had happened in Max's absence from Zootopia since his kidnapping. The owner of Max, DrummerMax64, applauded the interactions and declared them highly accurate to how those being on the Autism spectrum integrate with those who are not. To me, that was high praise. Zoey served her purpose for redirecting Max to another avenue to pursue, in the form of Ronald. The puzzle pieces are being set up to be in their appointed positions for the finale. Only a matter of time before I start knocking them down!_


	16. Friday - Terror to the Max - Evening

_Savannah Central – The Merry Wombat Apartments – Against the Sahara Square Border Wall  
_ _Friday – 07:48 PM – Scattered Clouds / Cool Breeze_

Ronald proved to be quite the difficult character to slip away from. All throughout their trip to and from the restaurant, Max couldn't seem to find an opening with which to sneak away from the crafty otter. Whenever he thought he had a chance, Murana's secretary would immediately spot his behavior and bring him back.

"Oh, no, no! I am responsible for you. If what was said is true and you are to be the new adopted son to my Boss, then I can't possibly let you out of my sight! I would be remiss if I did not take utmost care of you!" Ron would smile as he patted Max on the head, and he continued to eye him carefully as they went about dinner.

It was interminable to Max. He just wanted to be on his own and find Murana in his own way. Granted, he would have most likely been better off with Chris or at the very least hanging around her apartment suite, but being around others he barely knew was aggravating to him. He was never quite a people person, and the mere fact he was comfortable with Murana was a miracle in and of itself. Ron seemed the lesser of the evils, yet turned out to be quite the opposite.

The conversation during dinner was banal and the noodles soggy. Max preferred a bit more crunch to his pasta, but whoever had cooked them overdid it. They practically slipped off his spoon and plopped into the broth, causing some to splash across the tablecloth. He had even attempted to excuse himself to the bathroom, to which the otter thankfully gave him some privacy to relieve himself, but then came in not even two minutes later to check and see if he was alright. His escape by window to street level was completely foiled.

They had walked a good distance from the heart of Savannah Central and were coming up along the eastern border wall that just over its imposing height was Sahara Square. The tall skyscrapers of central downtown were giving way to smaller complexes that were sandwiched side by side with nary an inch between them, as if they were created to be one large building, but separated by dividing walls and different façade décor.

It was getting dark and the streetlamps buzzed on, illuminating pockets of street down the row. A large automobile zipped past them and splashed through a puddle, causing it to drench Ron ahead of Max. Taking the opportunity to run, the raccoon tore off across the street and down a narrow alley between two buildings. Within moments, he could feel a firm grip on his arm as he turned around to look at the dripping otter.

Never losing that smile, Ron remarked, "If I didn't know any better, Max, I am starting to get the feeling you don't like my company."

"No, it's not that." Max couldn't really put his thoughts into words.

"Well, do you have anywhere to go for the evening? A bed to sleep in?" Ron reasoned.

Max shook his head. "I'll figure something out."

Ron shook his head vehemently, "Not on my watch, Max. I think I'd lose my job if the Boss discovered I had just left you to your own devices. I rather like my position right now and I'd hate to lose it. Besides, I can't in good conscience leave a young kit out on the street like you. I'm not that type of person."

"I've been on the street before." Max tugged back on his arm, but the otter's grip was strong.

"Not the point. I promise you can be rid of me once we discover Murana, okay?" Ron tried to bargain with the stubborn raccoon. Max finally gave in and just bowed his head in acquiescence. "Good. Ugh, now I have to get a new suit to wear. Good thing tomorrow is the weekend."

Letting the otter lead him to his complex, Max had to tilt his head as he looked at the garish neon sign that emblazoned the building. It had a combination of adobe-like mold with rounded edges along the rooftop, but mixed with the brick and mortar of the major structures around it. It was an oddball collage of clashing styles that gave it its distinctive, yet unusual flair.

Ron looked up at the blinking 'Merry Wombat' sign and chuckled, "Yeah, it wasn't my first choice either, but the rent was cheap."

Ignoring the wailing siren of the police car zipping past behind them as they climbed the steps to the entrance, Ron buzzed himself in and held the door open for Max. Inside the barren entryway, Max could hear muffled coughing, some loud banging, a child crying somewhere and multiple television sets on in several rooms. Some refuse and trash lay in the corners of the hallways as a few lights flickered, in desperate need of a new fluorescent bulb.

Ron's brow furrowed, "Albeit cheap because it isn't really the nicest part of town, but I manage." He shrugged as he motioned for Max to follow him to the elevator.

It seemed like a very old freight elevator with a collapsing cross-hatch door you had to swing open and closed just to enter the cabin. The entire place creaked and shuddered as it made its laborious ascent to Ron's appointed floor. They just stood quietly as the lights along the walls flashed past them as they rose, revealing the dust and grime hiding in the corners of this place. The elevator shook and the buzzer blared when they reached their floor. Sliding the grated door open to allow Max off, Ron shut it and led him down the dim hallway.

They reached Ron's apartment as he looked back at Max with an abashed look. "Ah, sometimes my own key doesn't always work in the lock. If you'll excuse me." He huddled close around the door knob, trying to undo the lock. With a jerk and twist, the door swung open with some relief from the otter. "There you go. Home, sweet home."

Max wandered in, looking around at the sparse environs. He noted it wasn't that much different than when he lived at the orphanage. There wasn't much in the way of furniture. In fact, all he could really see, as he inspected the rooms, was an old, antique set of table and chairs, one rocking chair, a bed mattress with no frame on the floor and some dishes set up haphazardly on the tiny kitchenette counter.

"You don't have a lot of things." Max commented plainly.

"Movers got the wrong address." Ron explained, sweeping past him to toss a key on the tabletop. "I just moved in earlier this week and didn't have much time to reschedule their delivery, so I had to make do with the furniture that was already here when I arrived."

"Dusty…" Max drew a finger across the table, making a clean line through the dust.

Ron had just closed the refrigerator door, popping off the top of a beer, as he regarded the raccoon surveying his apartment. "As I said, not much time lately. I've been mostly at the bank doing the job than cleaning up the house, although you have reminded me that I need to do that this weekend." He took a swig before shuffling over to the rocking chair and plopping down into it with a contented sigh. Gently swaying back and forth, he studied Max a bit before speaking, "So tell me the truth, Max. It was clear I was not the best choice to be with for the evening waiting on Murana. So why did you come with me?"

Max had already settled into one of the wooden chairs flanking the table, his legs dangling off as he watched the inquisitive otter. He was far more intuitive than Max gave him credit for. Shrugging his shoulders, he looked out the window, another police siren squealing past their building, "I don't do well with people. I never have. I usually like to be left alone."

Ron folded his paws over the beer against his chest as his rocking stopped, "And you think being with Murana is going to help things? I hate to break it to you, but being adopted means not being alone."

"I know." Max's gaze flitted past Ron and focused on the bedroom across the hallway, where the bleak mattress lay. "I've always been fine by myself, but sometimes you just want to know someone out there loves you."

Ron observed the raccoon for a long while before sighing, "I think I get what you mean, Max." He took a deep chug before continuing, "Although I grew up with a dad, and with my mom having died during childbirth, I never quite felt like I was loved despite having a parent. So I can understand the need for wanting to have someone, anyone be that rock that keeps you grounded through the day. It's quite the feeling to have someone to come back home to and love."

Max's eyes focused on the beer in the otter's paws. "Do you have anyone like that?"

Ron looked a bit startled at the question. "Me? No, actually. I do work for my father now, but it still is just all professional with him. I jumped at the chance to help with the family business, but in the end, it was just money and numbers to him. Despite all that, it pays the bills and makes a living for me." He seemed lost in his own thoughts, staring down at his drink.

"I never knew my parents." Max murmured, his eyes trailing back out to the neon lights out the window. "As long as I could remember, I was in Tail Hollow. I knew I was different the moment I tried to play with the other kids. I couldn't understand them. They all seemed so childish to me, but I tried to fit in. What I could call a family didn't care about me. They were only concerned with keeping me quiet until someone came along to adopt me."

Ron's face was full of pity, as it seemed his heart went out to the raccoon, "I can relate. Being the son of my father and his…position in the company, I did not have many friends myself growing up. It was quite lonely."

"I had given up hope." Max finally showed some emotion as anger formed on his face. "I became unruly and hard to control. I got into many fights as they ridiculed me, calling me trash or worse."

Ron adjusted his glasses, "I'm going to assume this is where Murana came in."

Max nodded, his line of sight never wavering from the window. "I didn't like her at first. I thought she was just the same as the rest. She kept visiting and never gave up. I had grown used to her coming around to see me. I had hope."

"Interesting." Ron flicked his tail, mentally taking it all in. "Did you know she had a full family?"

Max shook his head, "No. I didn't even know she had another adopted son until this week. She never really talked about herself much other than simple things, like what she liked or hobbies she was into. She was more interested in me."

"I can see why, you're quite the intriguing raccoon, Max." Ron laughed. "Don't give me that look. I'm just stating the truth."

"I don't really think so." Max rested his cheek in the palm of his paw.

"You remind me a bit of myself when I was younger." Ron looked pleased with this comparison. "On your own, you took the initiative to seek out someone whom you had no address for with very little hope of contacting, and against all odds, with very little leads, found the exact place she lived in." He thought for a moment, "Granted that could be considered to some as stalking, but the fact remains you did a very difficult task based on sheer determination alone! That is to be commended."

"If you say so." Max had already exhausted his brain on this conversation and he just wanted to find a place to relax.

Ron shot him a look, "Well, I haven't had this much interaction in quite a while. Let me tell you, lemmings are not the best conversationalists. They are rather simple-minded. I guess being stuck with them for this past week without the Boss to talk to has gotten me quite batty. I'm a bit more talkative than I normally am." Ron snickered at the thought.

His mirth died down a bit as they sat in silence. He continued to rock in his chair, enjoying the ambience of the night sounds. Max did not know how long they sat there together, but he was starting to get the oppressive feeling of wanting to be somewhere else right now. This place didn't feel right, and he just wanted a secure and comfortable place to sleep tonight. He felt so tired. The events of the last few days wore on his mental state.

Ron finished off his drink, ears flicking to the sound of even more sirens. Looking a bit troubled at the rising amount of police activity, he dug in-between the cushion and the armrest for the remote and turned on the small television perched on the corner of the kitchenette counter, facing the two of them. The screen was ablaze with purpose as the cameraman focused on the apprehensive koala reporter, the downed Iron Vulture in the background surrounded by arcing energy.

"…and nothing new has happened with the crashed aircraft that landed late Wednesday night. There was a brief moment earlier this morning where the electric field you see behind me disappeared, but a bolt of lightning from that very aircraft struck several of our news vans and police vehicles." The reporter looked very nervous, probably in fear for his own life just being out here reporting on the potentially dangerous situation.

"Although there were no major casualties from that incident, there appears to be more reports coming in from Zootopian residents that there have been bombings and vandalism happening across the city. Whether this seems to be connected at all to this crash remains to be seen. The power is still out for a large number of residents even tonight from Wednesday's accident. Who or what is responsible for this is still as of yet unknown." The koala finished.

Ron pointed up at the dim lighting in his apartment, "That would explain the brownout happening across the entire city. Until they can get the electric plants back up fully operational, I bet there will be a lot of intermittent outages across the city. We even lost power at the bank earlier today. You can imagine how much of a disaster that was." He shook his head as he recalled the memory.

Max's eyes dilated as he watched the news report, listening to Ron in the background talk about his job at the bank. Something wasn't sitting right with him and it didn't really click until just now. Without looking at the otter, he asked, "Ron, you're working for Murana at the bank, right?" After a confirmed grunt from the otter, "So what do you do for your father then?"

Ron didn't have time to answer this when his beeper went off, jolting Max out of his chair as he stared at the small device the otter was checking. "Ah, looks like some sort of intrusion happening at the bank."

"Burglars?" Max's first thought went to something bad.

Ron flicked off the buzzing and stuffed the beeper back into his pocket. "Possibly. It could be nothing, but since I'm the CEO's secretary, without her around it is my responsibility to see that the bank is secure." He sighed as he struggled off the chair, hopping to the ground with a flourish. He eyed the raccoon a few seconds before motioning him to follow. "Come on, I can't leave you hanging around here either, especially since you have the propensity for running. I don't think I could live with myself if something happened to you while under my care."

Tossing the beer bottle into the lone trash can situated by the sliding glass door leading out to the metal-railed balcony, Ron snatched the key off the table and tightened up his tie to make himself look more presentable. Flipping the television off, he supervised his charge out the door.

"Let's hope for both our sakes it's nothing and we can have a quiet night." Ron pronounced, shutting the door behind them and locking it.

Max had a strange feeling it was not going to go according to plan.

* * *

 _Savannah Central – Lemming Bros. Bank Corporate HQ – Front Foyer  
_ _Friday – 10:32 PM – Scattered Clouds / Slightly Chilly Breeze_

The rippling red and blue lights were visible from blocks away. Sensing the urgency in the situation, gunfire echoing along the skyscrapers, Ron and Max could hear multiple police chatter and radios clicking. Rounding the bend, the two of them saw half a dozen cop cars encircled around the front of the Lemming Bros. Bank. All officers were outside behind their vehicles, guns trained on the revolving door entrance to the building.

A high-pitched whine could be heard within as what sounded like a gatling gun was being fired off and on at intervals. Some of the stray bullets were piercing through the front façade of the bank and causing many of the officers to duck behind their cars as errant bullets hit the sides of their vehicles and deflated a few tires.

A huge rhino was buckled up against the back end of his cruiser screaming into his radio, "This is Officer McHorn, we have a 10-24 at the Lemming Bros. Bank. Extreme opposition encountered, request immediate assistance! I repeat…"

Their attention was directed at the heated scuffle just inside the foyer of the bank that no one saw or heard Ron and Max sidling up from behind. Max looked over and saw an unusual duo. A rabbit was peeking over an excessively large-sized car while her fox partner was huddled behind a wheel, loading up ammo into his pistol.

"We got to get in there somehow." Judy railed, crouching low and dropping her ears as a few stray bullets sailed over her head.

"Well, if you hadn't noticed, Carrots, those guys in there aren't too happy to see us." Nick smirked, finishing up his loading. "They look like Mr. Big's men, and believe me when I tell you they are not going to go down without a fight."

She scowled at him, "I would hope we can resolve this without killing."

"Yeah, let's hope for that. Why don't you call up Mr. Big now and tell him to stop all this nonsense. You're the godparent to his grandchildren, I'm sure you got some pull." He pulled out his cell phone and handed it to her.

"Har har, it's not like I have his number memorized. Besides…" Her ears shot up as she noticed both Max and Ron. "Who is that? Hey, you! You can't be here! It's dangerous!"

"Whoa, hey! Stop them!" Nick shouted.

"You stay here with them!" Ron ordered Max.

Without waiting for an answer, Ron hunched low under the cruiser, scuttling beneath it to the other side before making a mad dash across the no man's zone between the police and the front entrance. Max didn't waste any time in ignoring the otter's command and followed suit.

Judy leaped over the car, sliding off the front hood to land hard on the pavement beyond before launching into a dead sprint after the two. She squealed loudly as the gatling gun inside fired off another volley seemingly directly at her position, causing her to screech to a halt and somersault to the side.

"Carrots! Get back here!" Nick yelled, genuine fear in his voice.

Max plowed through the revolving door, shattered glass pricking his paw pads from the broken glass of the shattered frame. Inside was pandemonium. He could see several polar bears in dark, jet black trench coats firing indiscriminately with tommy guns across the vestibule into the receptionist's booth and the bank teller's counter top beyond, a set of waiting couches between the two.

Max could see the slithery shape of Ron zigzagging across the bare floor, the ceiling gun completely ignoring his presence and instead focusing on those hiding behind the banker's line. Leading the charge of Mr. Big's men was a plump, diminutive lemming with a gaudy, trim dress and an overly large pearl necklace. She was screeching commands to kill whoever it was they were firing upon.

"Who's that?!" She cried, pointing at Max standing in the entrance. "Whatever! Kill him too!"

Several bears aimed their guns and opened fire. The rattle of the gunshots drummed through his skull as both the bears and the gun installed above trained their sights on him. What followed was a hail of splintered tile, dust, and plaster wherever Max went. Leaping over a couch meant for customers, the gatling gun tore open new holes right through it. He scampered across the rest of the open area, leaped through the little opening in the bars and landed hard on his rump behind the counter.

"Max?" An astonished voice beside him caught his attention.

"Murana?" Max's eyes grew wide. He had finally found her.

There were five of them huddled behind the barricade. Another larger wolf was cursing loudly as he loaded another mag into his handgun. He was trying his best to peek over to get a look at their assailants' positions. Trembling and clutching with abject fear onto Murana was a skunk, his face buried into her side and a stench leaking from his posterior. Ron had already established himself alongside Murana and was seemingly in mid-conversation when Max appeared.

Without waiting for him to respond, she scooped up Max in a heartfelt hug, nuzzling her cheek against his. "Max! I was so worried about you! The last I saw you, Karnage was taking you away from me!"

"You don't remember?" Max was baffled as he finally let go and sunk into the embrace. "I was supposed to meet you at one of the airlocks to hop off their ship, but we were ratted out and I got captured."

"While this reunion is sweet and all," Anthony snarked, "Who the hell is firing on us and do we have any ideas on how to get out of this alive?"

Not even bothering to look over the teller counter, Murana answered as she continued to hug Max. "It's Trudy."

"Her old secretary before me." Ron clarified. "She wasn't the best of employees."

"She tried to kill me." Murana set Max down, petting Steven on the head to calm his nerves as she looked over at her husband.

Anthony rolled his eyes, "That makes total sense. It's not like we're hostages, so I can radio in the rest of my team to storm the place."

"Not a good idea." Murana snapped, pointing her finger up towards the ceiling. "Those gatling guns will tear them to shreds before they even get feet within this bank. If only I had my utility belt on, I might have something to rectify this situation." She groused.

"Seriously, whose bright idea was it to install that blasted thing?" Anthony barked, teeth bared. He was getting aggravated that he could do nothing to protect his family.

"That would be Trudy's." Murana groaned, ducking low as another volley of gunfire spat over their heads.

"Brilliant." Anthony muttered. "So where is this so-called utility belt of yours?"

"Since Billy's place got smashed, the only other spare suit I have is upstairs in my office." Getting an idea, Murana locked eyes with Ron, "I thought you said you installed a DNA profiling system in that device, so why is it firing on us and not on them?"

Ron wiggled over around the skunk that was still shivering face first into Murana's side, "I did, Boss! However, other than myself, I hadn't really had the time to put anymore DNA profiles into the database for the gun, and since you've been gone this entire week, I couldn't get any blood samples from you to add to it."

"I get that, but why is it not attacking them?!" She jabbed another finger in their direction.

"I'm not entirely sure." Ron puzzled over this. "Last I checked Wednesday morning, I was the only profile in the control panel."

"Come on out, Mrs. Wolford!" Trudy trilled, her tiny cackling sounding ridiculous only if it wasn't backed up by lethal intent. "Mr. Big has a message for you! You should have taken his offer to be his enforcer, because after all, don't you owe him for where you're at now?!"

"Of course!" Murana popped her forehead with a paw. "Trudy has ties to Mr. Big and I'm pretty damn sure he had something to do with my initial hiring here at the bank."

"Are you saying you were being watched?" Ron probed.

"More like being kept tabs on." Anthony assumed.

"I wouldn't be surprised if during business hours, Mr. Big had someone hired to put those goons' DNA into the system, and then when I showed up here next, they'd attack!" Murana growled. "All because I refused to do what he asked when he finally requested something of me. So instead of slowly getting me fired through embezzlement and the bank going under, they're now turning to more violent means of laying me off."

"Guess I had a hand in stopping that, Boss." Ron mused with some enjoyment.

"We both did." She corrected.

"Who is the big, bad wolf now, huh?!" Trudy continued to taunt, her laughter high-pitched and grating. "When I'm through with you, I'm going to have your pelt as a rug!"

"Charming lady, that one." Anthony seethed. "Murana, is there some sort of control mechanism for that gun up there?"

She nodded, gesturing with her head towards the receptionist's podium that doubled as an informational booth. "It's behind that at its base. We had it installed there for if we were robbed, the front clerk could immediately activate the guns and eliminate the threat."

"And quite possibly every other client of the bank. This was certainly a well-thought out idea. Why the hell did you sign off on it?!" Anthony was scoping out the distance between their position and the booth in question.

"The hell if I know! I normally didn't question many of the actions of my supposed loyal secretary." Murana was vexed, while Ron looked put off at her comment. She inched up next to Anthony and surveyed their route. "I'm too big a target. Even though I'm pretty fast myself, I don't think I'll make it there in time without getting hit." She put a paw on her husband's arm. "And you're not that much faster, so don't even think about making the sprint."

"Fine, so what do we do? Wait until they run out of bullets?" He turned to Ron and snapped his fingers. "You. How many magazines do those gatling guns have?"

"Maybe twenty or thirty left?" Ron wasn't entirely sure, but he knew it was a lot.

"That could last hours." Anthony was aghast.

Max crawled over on all fours towards the quivering skunk who was mumbling over and over, "I shouldn't have come here. I shouldn't have come here."

Max put out a small paw and rubbed the skunk's shoulders. "It's okay. We're going to be all right."

The skunk looked up and eyed him with curiosity, "Who…who are you?"

"Max Thrash…" He paused for a moment, wondering if this was the right time to say it. "I'm to be your new brother."

At this, a weak smile began to spread on the skunk's face. "Brother…? My name is Steven. H-happy to meet you." It was clear he was still quite terrified.

"We're at a standstill, then." Anthony fumed ignoring their introduction, rechecking the amount of bullets he had left.

"I could probably make that distance." Max offered, padding over next to Murana.

"What? No! You'll do no such thing!" Murana was adamant. "You just stumbled back into my arms again once and I will not lose you again!"

"I wasn't asking for permission." Max was resolute.

"If I am your mother, then you will do as I say." She began to reach out a paw to grab ahold of him to and prevent him from doing anything rash.

"It's a good thing you are not right now!" Max did a lazy salute and took off.

"Kill him!" Trudy pointed at the darting form of Max.

All guns turned and began to erupt in a flurry of bullets. Max could hear Murana scream as Anthony tried to put his full weight on top of her to contain her struggling. He was bellowing something about letting him go. She was furious and began snarling as she watched Max dash out into the line of fire in hopes of saving them all.

A tense moment later, Max dove and rolled behind the receptionist's booth. He was breathing heavy and began looking around the base of it until he saw a metal panel. Swinging it open, he looked at the complex machinery within. "What do I do?" He called out.

"Thank goodness." Murana almost broke down in tears at Max having survived.

"Do you see something that looks like a keyboard beneath a small monitor screen?" Ron shouted over the din of gunfire. After a confirmation from Max, he revealed, "Enter in the password R-0-S-C-0. Now scroll to the second option that says DNA profiles, hit enter. Now disable all profiles!"

"Run, you fools!" Trudy skirled, her eyes bulging as the gatling guns had no protected targets.

There were many howls and cries as the gatling guns tore them apart. Viscera and chunks were flying everywhere as they were riddled with holes like Swiss cheese. The gunfire went on for what seemed like several minutes and then all grew silent. Max peeked out from behind the podium and had to close them again at the brutal scene of death. There was very little recognizable of Trudy or any of Mr. Big's polar bears.

The lobby was eerily silent as they could hear the chatter of police just outside. Ron called out to Max, "Okay, now flip the red switch in the upper left to off."

Max did as he was instructed and each gun drooped like dead weight, the entire system offline. Murana scrambled out from beneath Anthony and rushed over to Max, scooping him up in her arms and kissing him multiple times. "You were very brave, Max! I'm so glad you are safe!"

"Is it over?" Steven began to stand up on wobbly legs.

"Yeah, that bitch always had it out for me, I guess." Murana smiled, seemingly joyful at the chaos they had brought down upon Trudy and her hired goons. With Max perched firmly on her hip, she looked over at her secretary, feeling uncomfortable but not exactly sure why.

Ron was tapping a text message into his phone, about to head over to be with Murana when he stopped suddenly, his ears flicking this way and that, "Do you all hear a beeping?"

Once their attention was drawn to it, it was hard to ignore. It was coming from beyond the wall they were next to by the banking counter. With Max still in her arms, Murana paced over and gripped Steven's paw in her own, keeping them both close by.

Anthony's eyes grew wide, "Everyone, get back!" He nearly barreled over Murana and her boys as he forcefully pushed them away and waved for Ron to back up as well.

The entire back wall exploded inward, rubble flinging across the room as smoke diffused through the lobby. More calls from outside were made for additional assistance as the shockwave from the blast reached the police. All five of them had set up camp behind one of the longer waiting couches in the foyer, the glass bank front opening out to the street at their backs.

As the dust settled, Don Karnage stepped through the opening, followed quickly by Mad Dog and Sadie. His gaze settled on the wilted gatling guns above them. He flung out his paws with fanfare, "Ah-ha! So there it is at last, our final prize! Good work, Mad Dog!" His focus wandered around the lobby, taking in the grisly sight in the center. "Ich, what beautiful work this vixen has wrought! Mad Dog, I don't want these dismantled to just the parts we need, I want to bring it all back with us. These could prove useful!"

"But, Boss…!" Mad Dog whined. "It looks heavy!"

Karnage ripped off a glove and smacked the dog on the head with it before slipping it back on. "Then you will get Sadie to help you carry it, you weakling!"

"He's here…he's here again!" Murana was beginning to hyperventilate, her limbs coiled into her as she began to assume a fetal position.

Anthony saw her withdrawing and gripped her shoulders hard, forcing her to look at him, "Don't leave us now, Murana. We are here with you. He's just a fox, like any other."

Trying to be brave for his mom, Steven curled up in her lap and began hugging her firmly, "It's okay, Mom. We're all here to help support you…e-even me." The waver in his voice didn't betray his sincerity.

Even Max had a paw placed on her leg, trying his best to show enough emotion that he cracked a smile at her. It was painful, but it was worth it for her. Ron's heart went out to the four of them. Finally seeing them all together like some oddball, misshapen family, he could see that despite all their issues and differences, there was still love there. Even Max, not even adopted, seemed to already be a part of it.

"So are we just going to let him take the guns?" Ron asked, his whiskers twitching as he observed them setting up some contraption that looked like a ladder to get up and dismantle the bolts that held the guns up into the ceiling. "They don't quite know we're here yet."

"They can have them for all I care." Anthony hissed, bringing out his radio. "There is only three of them. I'm calling in for backup." He brought the mic up to his muzzle. "All units, the situation has been deescalated. This is Officer Wolford, requesting immediate assistance."

Don Karnage's ears perked up at the crackle of the radio. He turned to the entrance as Judy Hopps came blazing through, leaping through the jagged holes in the glass and landing firmly on the shattered tiles. He immediately whipped out a gun and began firing at the bunny. Surprised, but still fleet-footed on her paws, she bounded and leaped over his gunfire, only yelping as the final shot clipped her cottontail as she was diving behind the couch, slamming up against Murana and trying to recover.

"Rotten blueberries, Carrots! I told you to wait!" Nick yowled, instantly ducking for cover, having not even made it into the foyer.

"Evening, Mrs. Wolford, family." Judy nodded to each of them in turn before directing her focus on Anthony. "Officer Wolford, what's the situation here?" She took a chance to glance over the couch, but had to retreat quickly as another bullet grazed her ear, drawing a fresh, crimson sting. "Ouch, he's a good sharpshooter…" She massaged the injury.

"We were being entrenched by a group of Mr. Big's men, but that was resolved. Now we got these three weirdos that just blew out the back wall, and they're wanting something with the guns above." Anthony summarized quickly.

"Think we can take them?" Judy was eager, ready for some action.

"He's a very good shot." Max interjected, pointing out the obvious by gesturing to her two injuries.

"Boss, I think he's-" Ron was waving his paw, tail thumping on the floor.

Murana stiffened as she felt the cool steel of Karnage's barrel pressing up against the back of her head. The fox leered as he regarded the motley crew. "And Max here is absolutely right! I do fashion myself as undoubtedly the best marksman on my ship as well as an excellent thief with great reflexes." He admired his claws, rubbing them ostentatiously on his vibrant coat. "You would do well to remember that or I will blow the brains out of my former pet here."

"Pet?" Judy cocked an eyebrow as she began to reach for her own gun.

Digging the barrel deeper into the back of Murana's head, causing her to wince and growl, Karnage raised a finger at Judy. "Ah-ha-ha. I wouldn't try that if I were you. How fast do you think you are, hmmm? From my angle, I can kill at least three of them before I bet you can get your pistol out of your holster. Do you really want to take that chance and accept this loss of life?" After a soured glare from the bunny, he smirked. "There's a good cop. You are all now my hostages. Come, come, up!"

He motioned for them all to rise from behind the couch, keeping his gun trained squarely on Murana. Signaling them to drop whatever weapons they had by his feet, he had them all line up in a row before him. Mad Dog and Sadie were watching the proceedings until a singular look from their captain got them to resume their tasks of disassembling the guns from their sockets.

"You know you won't get away with this." Judy looked furious.

"With what, my dear bunny?" Karnage was enjoying himself.

"With…whatever it is you are doing." She gestured up to the guns, now half off their fitting plates.

"You have no idea what it is I am doing, do you? Don't presume to think you understand what it is I am after." He paused a bit, admiring the impressive foyer. "Although…I am not above taking the opportunity when it so happily presents itself, I can also take a nice chunk of the spoils this bank has to offer."

"We have you surrounded, you know." Anthony simmered, his teeth bared. As if to accentuate the point, a small whoop went off outside the doors, reminding them all of the roving red and blue lights flitting past their faces through the glass.

Karnage casually looked out towards the throng of cop cars and guns aimed at the entrance with indifference. "And endanger the hostages inside? I don't think so. If it's one thing I've learned about police through the decades, they never change. They'd always try to find a peaceable way to rescue all mammals involved. Pathetic."

"Almost done, Boss!" Mad Dog nearly squealed with glee as the second gatling gun slipped off its hinges with a clunk.

Barely acknowledging his lackey, Karnage continued to gloat, "And another thing you aren't considering. I have more than just you six as hostages. Every single person hovering around and gawking at my beautiful ship are at risk. I just need to say the word or not report back to my crew within the next hour and they will start firing upon everyone there. Officer Bunny," His name for her got Judy's ear to twitch irritably. "Is that a risk you are willing to take?"

Murana could see that Judy's paws were clenching hard, eager to do some damage to the arrogant fox. "It's useless." She stated finally, stepping forward in front of them all. "If it's one thing I know about Don Karnage, he means what he says and he will hurt innocent civilians just because. I would not provoke him."

"Murana, what are you doing?" Anthony whispered harshly.

"I'm trying to think of something!" She shushed back.

Either having not heard their interaction or just dismissing it, Karnage clucked his tongue and smiled, "Ah, you see? It seems my lovely pet has more sense than all of you combined. I'd expect nothing less from her!" This caused Murana's ears to flatten as she scowled at him. His eyes traveled past her towards Max, who was sticking close to the skunk. "However, I am growing rather fond of a new pet as of late. So glad of you to finally bring him back to me in one piece! Max, do be a good pet and come over here." His gun still pointed toward Murana, he beckoned the raccoon over.

"You will not touch him!" Murana roared, claws springing out.

"My dear, I do not believe you are in any position to bargain. I believe your worth to me has run out, especially after having caused me so much trouble." He took aim at her heart, cocking the hammer on his gun. "Unless you can give me one good reason why I should spare you."

She glanced over towards the bank vault behind the barred teller windows before turning back to Karnage. "You want a nice going-away present? I own this bank. I can get you the money you want."

Karnage raised an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued. "You? Own this bank? Either that is highly convenient or an outright lie."

"It's true." Ronald stepped in, correcting the placement of his glasses. "I'm her secretary and she has a key to the vault in her office upstairs. If you'll just give us a few moments, we can get what you want and nobody has to get hurt."

"How interesting." Karnage waved a paw off in the direction of the elevators. "Very well, you two go get me my money and we'll see where you stand after that."

Murana shook her head adamantly, "No. I'm taking my family with me." She moved to be in front of Steven and Max, putting a reassuring paw on the shaking skunk.

"Tsk, tsk, you really think I'm that stupid?" Karnage noted the gesture of affection Murana gave to Steven. "That one, there." He pointed at the skunk. "He stays with me as insurance in case you try anything funny."

"Absolutely not!" Murana was heaving. She wanted to rend Karnage apart, but she had too much to lose right now and she could not bear the thought of losing any member of her family.

Looking bored, Karnage repeated his demand, "The skunk or he dies. It doesn't make much difference to me."

"Mom, please don't let me go!" Steven was near hyperventilating.

Karnage sighed, "Mad Dog, can you go snatch our little hostage?"

"With pleasure!" He sniggered, roughly yanking Steven from Murana's grip, causing him to shout and squirm.

"If you dare hurt him, I will hunt you down and rend you from limb to limb!" Murana's wrath was on full display. She was only in a blue shirt and jeans, completely unassuming to a normal passerby, but those around her who knew what she was understood she was in lethal form right now.

"Spray him!" Max offered helpfully, causing all eyes to pivot to him. "He can do that, can't he?" He shrugged.

"I-I can't!" Steven yowled.

"Yes, yes you can!" Anthony encouraged. "I've had to deal with that crap before. I can suffer through it now. Just let loose and stink these fuckers!"

"Of course, do as they say." Karnage cooed, "Right before I put a bullet through your brain." He drew out a second, smaller pistol from his belt and aimed it at Steven, causing his eyes to widen like saucers.

"Mom…I-I can't….bre…" His panic attack was reaching a fever pitch and he felt like passing out again.

"Stop it! He needs his inhaler! He can't breathe!" Murana bellowed.

Karnage looked over at the struggling skunk and gave it a moment's thought, "You're wasting my time. Either get the key to the vault from your office upstairs or I just shoot one of you for kicks and be on my way with Max."

"You bastard!" Murana grinded her teeth, but finally acquiesced. "Fine, but I'm taking Max with me as insurance you won't just kill Steven."

"And I'm going with her as well." Ron stated firmly.

"Doesn't matter to me. As long as I get to leave with Max." Karnage yawned. "Time is wasting. Sadie will go with you to make sure you don't try anything." He motioned with his head for his fellow pirate to escort them.

"You going to be okay?" Murana turned to Anthony with concern.

"We're going to be fine." Judy nodded, placing a paw on Anthony's arm. "We'll both be here in case things go wrong. We'll make sure he doesn't hurt your son, Mrs. Wolford."

Anthony agreed, moving in briefly to give a small peck on the cheek to Murana, "Go on, honey. We can handle ourselves here." In a more hushed tone, he whispered to her, "Get what you need to handle him."

A small gasp from Steven drew her attention. The poor skunk had passed out from fear. She could just barely make out a small movement of his chest as he was being held by Mad Dog. Breathing a sigh of relief that he was at least still getting air, even while unconscious, she bowed her head. "I won't be long."

"Touching, but get on with it." Karnage cocked the other gun trained on the comatose skunk.

Shooting him one last look, she reached down and held Max's paw in her own. With him alongside her, she led the small group towards the elevators. Ron was close behind as Sadie trailed the rear, making sure his weapon was pointing at the three of them. Pressing the button for the cabin to descend to their level, they all waited in tense silence. Max wasn't sure why Murana was agreeing to some ridiculous plan to give Karnage money from a bank she owned. There had to be some other reason why she wanted to get away from him right now.

The doors shifted open upon reaching the executive offices. Cascading rows of miniature cubicles and workspaces spread out as far as the eye could see towards the far ends of the open floor plan. It was eerily quiet afterhours. What would have been a bustling scene of lemmings and chaotic workflow was nothing more than empty seats and mute keyboards. The pervading lack of sound caused all of their senses to be on high alert.

With a grunt, Sadie prompted them to step out and guide him to Murana's office. It was the most prominent structure on the floor, its opaque windows looking out onto the cubicle farm, her name emblazoned on the door. Using a spare key from her pocket, she unlocked it and guided them all in. Her eyes were darting around her room, trying to figure out how best to eliminate Sadie so she could get the equipment from her office.

Her ears shot up as she dived to the floor, knocking Max and Ron over and making both of them yip, surprised at her sudden movement. The glass of her office window spouted a small, circular hole as the sniper bullet plowed right into the forehead of Sadie, throwing him completely off his feet and shattering the entire opaque façade of her office. His limp corpse crushed several desks in the process.

"What the hell was that?" Ron asked, looking surprised as he slithered out from underneath her, keeping low to the ground.

As if on cue, the phone on her desk began to ring. Max watched Murana trade looks with Ron as they waited out the call. It went straight to voice message, a confident voice seeping out of the speaker. "Pity that I couldn't catch you a third time with your guard down, Murana. You almost didn't see me coming."

"Jack Savage!" She snarled.

"I'm going to assume you said my name, my dear. Don't wear it out. Now be a doll and pick up the phone before the answering machine interrupts me. I'd hate to have our conversation cut short and deprive me of my final farewell with my good friend and former partner before I pop one into her heart."

"So courteous of you. Little prick." She muttered, having only her paw peeking over the top of her desk as she clicked the button to pick up the call. "What do you want?"

"Isn't it obvious? Your death, of course." Jack rejoined with mirth. "I did warn you fairly that you were my mark, did I not?"

"Who is Jack?" Max asked, crawling on all fours to try and get a good glimpse out the window to see where the shot came from.

Murana kept an eye on Max, warning him, "Stay out of view of that window!"

She went on all fours, hastily keeping out of view as she butted up against the side paneling opposite the mounted flat screen TV. Pressing a small code into a hidden panel in the wall, she extended out a rack of clothes similar to the one where she kept all her spare business outfits, but instead it housed another set of her vigilante garb complete with a few utensils of death of her own.

"Just an old…acquaintance from a time I'd rather forget." She answered back to Max, sifting through her gear, looking for just the right weapons to engage in a long range battle against Jack.

"Clever girl." Jack admitted. "Trying to gain more cover for yourself and blocking my view. No doubt gathering something in your office to try and shoot back, like the good crack-shot you are."

"We learned from the best." Murana scoffed, assembling the pieces of a sniper rifle herself. Her fingers worked fast as she fastened each part together to form a formidable-looking weapon.

"And yet you are either oblivious to one of the most important practices we were required to adhere to when out on the job or just simply forgot." Jack simpered, his cocky voice strident on her ears.

"Oh, and what's that?" She had just finished applying the silencer to the end of the barrel, loading up some ammo into the magazine when she detected the odd look Max was giving from across the room on the other side of the desk. He was pointing at something behind her.

"We assassins work in pairs to take down our appointed marks." Jack said with finality. "Thanks for the heads-up earlier, Ronald."

"What?" Murana looked confused as she backed up into her supposed secretary.

A lancing pain seared through her ribs as the knife the otter held sliced through her flesh like butter, cutting clean into her side. The gun clattered to the ground, the agony of the wound growing exponentially as it was twisted to lock in the dagger. Ron stepped back a few paces, his paw releasing the handle as he looked upon her with a mixture of fear and horror. Max couldn't interpret the expression and wondered if he was either confident in his kill or disgusted he had to do it.

"Ron…but…you…?" Her paws went to the knife pommel, clutching it as her breathing came out in ragged gasps. She collapsed to the floor, her eyes never leaving Ron's.

"I'm sorry, Murana." He did look genuinely remorseful.

"Good job, Ronald." Jack's voice emitted from the phone. "Your dad would be proud. Now, finish the job."

* * *

 _The first scene was never planned when I was building the overall week structure of the story. This scene between Max and Ron came about during the detailed overview planning of Day 5 just before I began writing it. I realized I needed a quiet moment to reveal some key pieces of information from both characters that would assist in the twists that would be revealed shortly. It was also a nice moment to reacquaint ourselves with a character we hadn't truly seen since Day 2, so it was nice to have Ron bounce off of Max in a conversation._

 _The final sequence was horrible to design, it took forever to lay out each beat of the action set-piece and figure out which characters would be where and who would be with who at each stage of the action. Furthermore, figuring out how such a bevy of characters would play off each other was a nightmare. I needed each character to shine in a particular way in both this sequence that ends this chapter and if not here, set them up to shine at the beginning of the next chapter to round out this insane series of events. So in reality, I planned two chapters worth of material, but had to firmly pick a dividing point with which to end this chapter on. This twist was already laid out from the get-go. I already knew before I even started the story how this scene would play out, so it was so great to finally get to this point and nail it with aplomb. I sincerely hope people are both shocked and satisfied at this reveal and if rereading back through the story, find all the hints and clues leading up to it were there from the start. After this day, we will be on the home stretch to resolving the multiple crisis that beset our heroine!_


	17. Saturday - Darkest Before the Dawn - Mng

_Savannah Central – Lemming Bros. Bank Corporate HQ – 44th Floor, Executive Offices  
_ _Saturday – 12:01 AM – Scattered Clouds / Slightly Chilly Breeze_

The crimson started to leak through her shirt as the serrated dagger brought jagged pains that shot up and down her rib cage every time she breathed. At the angle it was twisted, trying to move it or even attempt to pull it out would result in catastrophic and potentially irreversible damage without expert medical equipment and know-how. She could do nothing but grope the handle sticking out from her body as she fell back onto the floor, stunned at the diminutive otter standing above her.

"Finish the job." Jack repeated over the speakerphone.

Heaving and seemingly upset at what he had to do, Ron answered back without taking his eyes off Murana's, "She's done for, Savage. She isn't going to get help anytime soon. Just let her die in peace."

"Ah…letting her suffer to the bitter end, eh? You're crueler than I expected." Jack seemed a bit impressed. "What about the witness? I see that there is a third person there with you."

"Him?" This brought Ron's focus back to Max, who was looking at him with an unreadable expression. "He's just a kit. No harm to anyone."

"Kill him too." Jack ordered unceremoniously.

Ron's tail thumped on the floor loudly as he adjusted his glasses with a finger. "I didn't agree to work for my father to kill children. I did what he asked and struck my mark."

"Ronald, you know what your father will do if you disobey. Do your job. Remove all witnesses. Now." Jack's voice was steel and offered no room for rebuttal.

After a few moments to mull it over, Ron faced the window directly. "This is wrong. I was led to believe Murana was a fellow assassin-turned-criminal that needed to be put down."

"We're all criminals, Ron. What's your point?" Jack was started to get irritated.

"What was described to me was not what I found. She is much more than some petty thug who kills for pleasure. She has a family." Ron reasoned, gazing back over to Max.

"We all have families. That doesn't excuse the fact she was marked for death by Rosco, your father. You do the job or I do it for you." The rabbit chastised over the phone. "What happened to you, Ronald? You were so eager to take your first kill. You poisoned her chicken skin, steeped her tea in nightshade and more. So anxious to prove yourself, and now you turn yellow and stop right when you're at the finish line."

Ron gave a long, hard look at Murana. She was no longer staring at him, instead just blankly looking at the floor, her mind seemingly in another plane of existence. "That was before I got to know her. The more I read up on her, met part of her family and saw how they were together, I realized it was something I was missing. I never had that before, not even with Rosco after Mom passed away. I looked at her with her family and thought to myself, if she could find and create a family long after her days being an assassin, why couldn't I do the same?"

"And yet you stabbed her regardless." Jack chuckled into the phone.

"She backed up into it, I hadn't decided yet if I was going to go through with it." Ron explained, regarding his paws, the instruments of this destruction. "I only turned the knife on instinct. I didn't really have time to think."

"Humph, you're pathetic. I'm pretty sure Rosco will forgive me if I tell him I eliminated a filthy traitor."

Both Max's and Ron's ears shot up as the phone clicked off. Ron dove to the floor as three more holes appeared in the glass window, the bullets zipping over their heads and splintering through the opaque glass paneling of Murana's office. Scrambling over on all fours, Ron picked up the sniper rifle next to her and raised it to his eye level. He calmly fired off a few shots at the exact position he trailed the angle of those incoming bullets from.

Disregarding the expected departure of Jack's perch, he lowered the weapon and tapped Murana on the face to get her attention. "I don't expect you to forgive me, Bo-, er…Mrs. Wolford, but I need you to get up and follow me back downstairs. It is not safe up here. We're sitting ducks in a shooting gallery if we stay."

She glared at him as she grunted, her breath coming out in whines. Pulling herself together, she rolled over onto her paws and knees, gripping the extended suit rack coming from the wall to assist in getting up onto her hindpaws. Steadying herself slowly, she leaned over to grab a smaller tranquilizer gun and a few metal instruments of unknown purpose from the containers at the bottom of the rack.

"We will talk later, Ron. For now, are you with me or against me?" She winced, drawing a paw up to cradle the knife lodged between her ribs.

Looking very secure with that obscenely long rifle being held in one arm, he nodded his head with firm resolution. "I'm sorry for stabbing you. It's just part of the job. I think you know how it is."

She paused and gave him an inscrutable look, "Unfortunately, I do. We'll discuss when this all blows over, but it's safe to say you are fired, Ron."

"I figured." He snorted.

A small crash directed their attention to a small ball shattering the window to pieces. Immediately, noxious gas began diffusing through the air. A huge thud was heard as chunks of stone flecked off the window sill.

Limping over to Max to half pick him up from the floor, she staggered past the dead corpse of Sadie. "Come on! He's going to attempt to zipline over here! We need to be as far away from here as possible!"

"Right behind you!" Ron informed, turning around to take a few potshots through the fumes, holding his breath as he did so.

They all could hear a small curse as the monitor on Murana's desk hurtled to the ground in a resounding clatter, Jack having misjudged the distance to swing into her office. Gas mask firmly seated around his ears, he calmly surged in with pistol at eye level, swiveling it left and right to find his targets. His tuxedo looked sharp in the filtered moonlight. He was always the consummate professional, even when he was killing.

Sensing movement down the row of tiny cubicle spaces, he fired off a few rounds before swapping ammo types. Murana sidestepped too far to the left and banged up against a copying machine, driving the knife deeper, causing her to cry out in misery. Smirking at her pain, Jack spun the cylinder and cocked the gun. Taking aim, he led his target and pounded off a single round towards the ceiling leading to the elevators.

"Shit!" Murana swore.

The tiny bullet exploded, its concussive force bringing down the plastered tiling panels and metal beams into a flimsy yet still effective blockade towards their escape route. It wouldn't hold them for long, but it would be enough time for Jack to close the distance and be upon them swiftly. Taking a small needle dart from her pocket, she loaded it into the tranquilizer gun chamber and fired at the mound of debris.

Putting an arm in front of Max to ensure he stayed behind her, she motioned to Ron, "Shoot at that small dart with the rifle!"

Understanding immediately what she wanted, he shut an eye and took aim. The round hit the vial dead on and exploded into a small plume of flames. The minor blast cleared enough of the barricade to allow them to sprint through and hit the elevator doors. She slammed her fist into the down call button. Thankfully, there was a cabin already on their floor that opened immediately. Filtering inside, she hit the lobby button and watched as Jack's form appeared within the slit of the closing doors.

Leaning back and sighing against the metal bars just underneath the lemming catwalks encircling the perimeter of the elevator, she turned to Max. "Hey, hun. You doing okay? I'm sorry you had to be mixed up in all this."

"I'm fine. Was that your superhero outfit back in your office?" Max queried. Murana had to marvel at his fortitude; all this chaos didn't seem to faze the raccoon in the slightest.

Grimacing from how bad laughing hurt her side, she gently massaged the wound entry. "I guess you could say that. Although many wouldn't think that I am."

Ron observed the two of them. Max had something akin to wonder in his eyes as he looked directly at her. She returned the fond look and gave him a bit of a ruffle between his ears as she hugged him to her. Ron's heart melted. Seeing the two of them like that made him regret and miss all the opportunities his dad could have taken to form a better family.

"Murana, I just want to let you know-" Ron began.

The entire elevator shuddered as the cabin stopped and the lights went out. Murana barked over to him, "He killed the power to the elevator. He's going to cut the cables."

Ron sniffed, "Efficient. He'll be taking out two birds with one stone. Well played, Jack." He scanned upwards and noticed the upper compartment door that would lead them up on top of the elevator proper. "How about we take that?"

Murana shook her head, "No, he'll be expecting that and will be picking us off from above. Besides, I don't think I could make the climb in my current condition, no thanks to you."

Ron looked down at the rifle and sighed, "This looks sturdy enough. It'll destroy this thing, but we could use this to pry the doors open and hope we're at a floor stop."

The entire structure shook again as the first cable was sliced through, the space lurching dangerously off to one side. Trying to maintain balance, she shouted back, "Worth a shot. I can always get more of where that gun came from!"

Nodding, he banged the end of the gun onto the floor, snapping off the barrel. With a smooth end to wedge between the two doors, Ron slid the rifle in and began pulling back on the butt. Murana assisted and they eventually got the doors open. They were thankfully several feet below an opening. Opening that set of doors too, they saw that they were nowhere near the ground floor.

"And I still have to climb." She growled. She vaulted Max up onto the floor as another dangerous shake signaled the impending drop. Jack was going after the last cable.

Holding both their arms out, they gripped Murana as she was dragged up over the edge onto the floor, screaming along the way as her chest was brushed across the floor. Seconds after her hindpaws cleared the opening, a mechanical grind bellowed throughout the shaft as the entire cabin quivered and then was whisked out of sight. A few moments later, they could hear it slam into the ground far below with a cacophonous roar.

"He's not going to stop." Murana gasped, trying to recover from being pulled up from the elevator.

Ron observed the wide open doors of the shaft. "Not when his target is still alive, yep. He'll be down to our level fairly quickly. We should move to the stairs."

Helping Murana under one arm to get her back to standing, Ron assisted both her and Max down the rows of offices. Following the signs that would lead them to the stairwell, he bashed through the door, causing it to bang loudly against the brick siding. Peering down the spiraling staircase, he estimated they had at least another 15 floors left to traverse before exiting out to the lobby.

"We might make it down half of these before he catches up, but we'll need another plan if we wish to survive the other half." Ron didn't sound very hopeful.

Glancing around, Max noticed some piping that trailed upward from the lower landing and hooked right above the doorway they entered from. "Murana, let me try something."

"Max! What are you doing?" She went to grab him, but he had already slipped out of her grasp.

"Please, just let me do this. If this doesn't work, we're probably all dead anyway!" He rationalized.

Not finding the will to argue, she choked back a sob and allowed Ron to escort her down the stairs. Giving a nodding salute to the brave tyke, Ron soothed, "I think I know what he's planning. He is a brave kid, that one. I would be proud if he were my son."

"I am already proud of him." She murmured, keeping her eyes on the stairs so as to not trip.

As predicted, Jack sauntered through the doorway and gazed upwards before turning his eyes downwards. Spotting the two making their way down the landings, he began popping off a few shots, the brass ricocheting off the railings. He smiled as a few clipped Murana's thigh and Ron's tail, causing both to grunt in restrained reaction.

Max was crouched carefully on top of the piping just above the entrance. He had a clear view down to the back of Jack's striped head. Silently letting himself drop to hang from the pipe, he began to swing back and forth to build up momentum. He noticed Jack was reloading his gun, getting ready to follow them. He needed to be swift!

Letting go, his small huff attracted the turning of one ear, and then the rest of the body. Jack pivoted and began to raise his gun towards the incoming raccoon. The shot rang out loudly, narrowly missing Max's stomach. His hindpaws connected squarely into Jack's chest, slamming him up and over through one of the middle railing bars. With a startled yip, Jack toppled ears over paws down the stairwell.

It was like watching the entire event unfold in slow motion. Murana noted Max dashing down the steps to catch up to them, Jack hurtling down the multitude of floors, passing by them completely. Their eyes locked on for a fraction of a second, his face showing true fear for once. His training kicked in shortly after, reaching into his belt and ripping open the faux-leather siding to unfurl a hooked line. Swinging it like a lasso as he fell, he managed to latch it onto the third floor railing just in time.

With an abrupt screech, the line slowed his fall, but not nearly fast enough. He hit the ground floor with a sickening crunch. All of them bent over to look down at the prone form of Jack Savage, his ears askew from the sudden stop. He wasn't moving. Taking the opportunity, they made their way down the rest of the floors and bypassed his inert body, not even bothering to check if he was alive.

"Shouldn't we check to see if he's dead?" Max regarded Jack one last time as the door swung closed.

Murana responded tersely, "He could be acting and I don't want to expose myself any further at this point."

"You could always pop him off with your gun." Ron suggested.

"And alert Don Karnage anymore than we already have that we are coming armed? I don't think so! My family is out there and he has my son. I don't want to chance him getting spooked and firing off out of fear or spite." She snapped her fingers and caused the two of them to stand still. "Ron, I need you to stay behind here and cover me while Max and I go on. I will come up with a story why you are not here." She pressed the tranquilizer gun into his paws. "The less he knows about what we have, the better."

Holding his eyes a moment longer to ensure he understood, she held tightly onto Max's paw and shambled out into view. Anthony and Judy were still being held at gunpoint as their eyes turned to them first, followed shortly by Karnage and Mad Dog. Steven was still passed out in the fox's arms, which was probably a blessing in this case.

"Oh ho…what in blazes happened to you? Where is Sadie? I was getting worried after all that crashing and pounding we heard!" Karnage searched beyond her to see if he was going to be along shortly. "And where is that otter secretary of yours? Was he not with you too?"

Murana didn't have to act hard to look in pain for Karnage as she stammered, "There was a scuffle upstairs. Ron tried to protect me and got injured. They…killed each other, but not before your man got to me." She looked down at the knife jutting out from her side for emphasis.

Karnage seemed visibly jolted at this, cursing under his breath. "The fool. He didn't even get his fix yet!" Snarling at his minion's ineptitude, he motioned with a paw for her to come closer. "I've lost two good men today, but never you mind! Come closer and give me the keys to the safe so Max, your pretty skunk and I can get out of here!"

"Not going to happen, chief!" Judy was itching to put Karnage down.

"Unless you want people dead, bunny, I'd advise you to sit your cute, little cottontail down." Karnage snarked.

"Don't call me cute!" Judy leaped into action, forcing Karnage's paw to swing towards her, shooting her directly in the chest.

The air whooshed out of her as the impact flung her back, skidding her across the floor. Anthony was over her in a minute, trying to radio that they had an officer down. It was at that moment that Murana yelled for Ron to fire. Sensing the diversion, Karnage went to aim his gun straight at the skunk in his possession when the dart punctured his neck, causing him to drop Steven to the floor and teeter a bit before collapsing, paw over his wound.

Murana immediately scooped up Steven who was just coming around, keeping both him and Max behind her and firmly away from Karnage. Mad Dog was at a complete loss of what to do, his eyes bulging as he turned from one mammal to the next. It seemed like he was going to bolt if not given a command and soon.

"What…what did you hit me with?" Karnage's movements were sluggish and it seemed like he was slurring his words as if drunk. "I can't feel my face…and it's so very cold."

Leering at the fox who gave her years of residual trauma, Murana informed him, "I forgot to mention, Ron." She barely looked over at the otter who had now waddled up beside her. "The darts I carried had a potent toxin that slows the heart until it stops beating. He'll be dead within minutes."

"N-no…" Karnage uttered, gurgling on spit.

"What about her?" Ron lifted his chin up in the direction of the downed Judy Hopps.

A paw shot up suddenly, "I'm alright…I'm fine." Rising up to a sitting position, she massaged her breast as she slipped off her custom-made breastplate. "This is bulletproof. I'm alive, just hurting like heck." She massaged her chest.

"We'll have to arrest the other." Anthony menacingly scowled at Mad Dog. "Ron, or whoever you are, you seem handy with a gun. Can you assist me in apprehending him?" It was then that he noticed the glaring knife handle protruding from his wife's body. "Honey, what happened?" He looked horrified.

Anthony barely made a few steps towards her when everyone ducked to the floor as several rapid gun blasts pummeled through the foyer. They saw Jack Savage, his tie hanging awkwardly half-tied down his chest, his suit coat unbuttoned and disheveled. He looked furious and continued to aim for Murana, who was already moving despite her injuries due to the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

"Boss, boss! Get up! We gotta get out of here!" Mad Dog was panicking, trying his best to drag Karnage by the arm. The fox was clearly dead.

Without even breaking stride, Jack took one second to fire a round straight through the face of Mad Dog, a bloody splatter exploding out the other side as the pitiful canine crumpled atop his captain. Jack was relentless and kept loading another clip into his pistol and firing on the group, keeping them on the defensive as he advanced.

"Who the hell is that?!" Anthony roared, ducking back behind a sofa.

"Does it matter? Shoot the fucker!" Murana yowled back.

Even Judy recognized a genuine threat when she saw one. Both her and Anthony pulled out their guns, peeked over their furniture cover and began firing indiscriminately towards Jack. The bunny instantly dodged and evaded, bounding around insanely fast. They pushed him back towards the elevators where he was a sitting duck for their gunfire. Leaping around the corner of the grand hall, he slammed up against the marble siding. In the sudden stillness that followed, they could just barely make out his labored breathing.

"This won't hold him off for long." Murana struggled to get back up, requiring the assistance of Anthony to do so. "We need to head out to-"

A growing moan caught their attention. They all stared in disbelief as Karnage rose up to his feet. It looked like he had aged fifty years in the span of a few minutes. Alongside him was Mad Dog, who also seemed to be just as old-looking now, complete with baggy wrinkles. There was still a nice blood stain on the back of his head, but the bullet wound was no longer visible anymore, having apparently healed over completely.

"Impossible." Judy was astounded.

"Improbable, yes, but not impossible, my dear bunny." The Don chortled, groaning as he used his subordinate to get back up onto his hindpaws. "And that was a very naughty thing you did to me, my pet!" He dusted off his jacket, looking concerned at the fresh blood from Mad Dog on it.

"Boss, we gotta get outta here!" Mad Dog skirled, doing his best to yank on Karnage's wrist cuffs, drawing a vexed look from the pirate.

"You make an excellent point. We got what we came for anyway. Let us vamoose!" He went to pick up his dropped gun, but paused as he heard a click.

Judy Hopps was already standing and had her gun sighted on him. She was determined to not let this fox escape. "You are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you."

The Don gave a sheepish grin, his cocky demeanor suddenly disappearing. "Ah, ah, let's not be hasty now! Someone could get hurt with that thing." He pointed at her gun, both paws raised in the air.

"Exactly. Radio them in." Judy said without emotion.

Anthony raised the walkie to his mouth, "All units, the situation is under control here. We have two suspects at gunpoint and a third is armed further inside the bank, currently not an active threat. Requesting immediate back-up."

"Roger that!" A gruff voice returned.

Anthony snapped the radio back onto his belt strap and knelt down by his wife, giving a small nod to both Steven and Max to give him some space to get to her. "Babe, we need to get you looked at immediately. Whatever you did in the past, we'll have to deal with later, but for now I'll escort you to the hospital and get this out of you." He delicately touched the hilt of the dagger sticking out of her side, drawing a small whine from her.

The rest of the police began to funnel in, Nick Wilde at the forefront, his eyes darting around frantically for Judy. His eyes resting on her, he beamed and began to rush over to her when Officer Swinton screamed out. "Everyone duck!"

A squealing ball of metal was soaring through the air directly at the group of incoming cops. It hit the tiger at the front of the pack and immediately exploded. Bloody chunks sprayed while bodies went flying tail over end in all directions. Another ball whistled towards them as Nick barreled over Judy to the floor, the rest of the ZPD scattering. It landed a few feet away from Murana. Ron pounced over and whacked it away with his tail, annihilating the nearby foyer coffee table, its shards of glass raining down from above.

"You're starting to piss me off!" Jack was furious. He was stalking toward them with ire, a mounted launcher chassis now attached to the underside of his pistol. His eyes were trained solely on Murana, his paws moving quickly to frontload two more rounds into the tube. "Just face your death with dignity, like a true killer should! This didn't have to get complicated!"

"The hell he armed with in that tux? An entire armory?!" Nick was amazed.

The bunny snarled as he lobbed another grenade into the group. Cops were opening fire as they began star-bursting and fanning out through the lobby. Jack leaped and bounded around the flying bullets and darts. The shockwave hit the group and Steven cried out, sailing through the air as Murana went to catch him. Anthony held her back as Max tried to get under cover.

"Steven! Anthony, we have to go after him!" Murana cared not for her own safety, but for that of her son.

The detonation did not greatly injure Steven, having been far enough away, but it knocked him out cold. Karnage was even shying away from the insane altercation, but his attention was distracted by the comatose skunk now by his feet. All parties flinched as another clunk was heard and an explosive twirled through the air.

"Get everyone out of here!" Judy roared, scooping up one arm of Murana while Anthony scooped up the other to help her get back onto her hindpaws.

Murana writhed and thrashed, crying out in misery as she attempted to fling herself back into the fray, her eyes not leaving Steven. "We have to go back for him!" She could see Mad Dog dragging him away with Karnage at the forefront.

"Not while there is an insane bunner on crack after us!" Nick Wilde commented, bundling up Max under one arm and making a mad dash for the exit. "Come on, buddy. Let's get you out of here!" He tried to soothe Max, despite being freaked out himself.

"Not a chance!" Jack ground his teeth.

Jack closed an eye and blew through Judy's calf, causing her to stumble and Murana to collapse right beside her. Anthony growled as he tried in vain to pick up the dead weight that was his wife. The wound was finally getting to her and she was struggling to keep up with the battle. Judy was screeching beside her, clutching her bleeding leg. Savage was merciless, proceeding to set Murana in his sights.

"Shoot him!" Anthony thundered, using his body to cover Murana's.

Any remaining cops still conscious or able-bodied enough to respond whipped out their firearms and began firing with impunity. Savage pulled a rod out from the sleeve of his suit coat and slammed it down on the tiled flooring, expanding it out quickly into a vertical makeshift shield of solid metal.

"Who the hell is this guy?!" Nick exclaimed, his eyes wide, feet still traveling past the front doors of the bank with Max in tow.

"I thought you knew everyone?!" Judy called out. No response came back. She cringed as she went back to babying her leg, her eyes now rapt on the approaching bunny.

Savage was calm as he loaded up several darts into his gun and pressed a button on the backside of his shield. Ignoring the hailing gunfire, he stuck his barrel through the small slit. Ears down, he took a peek over the top of his shield to gauge his targets. Bending low, he aimed and fired off six rounds, each one finding their mark. Within seconds, the remaining cops, including Anthony, fell to the floor, drugged and sleeping.

Ron stood up from behind a chair and walked confidently towards Savage, "Jack, she's dead anyway. Our job here is done. She will not survive the night." He tried to reason.

Jack stood up, venom in his expression as he coolly cocked his gun at Ron's head. "As much as I should shoot you right now, I am suddenly reminded of a promise to keep to your dad. You will either come along quietly as I finish the job or I'll be forced to take you back to Rosco myself and explain why you failed in your mission. I think his punishment would be far worse than anything I could dream up for you."

"She's dead already. We did the-" Ron began, paws out in supplication.

"Dragging you back it is." Jack fired a dart into Ron's neck, causing him to collapse as well with a look of shock on his muzzle. Shifting his paw into his pocket, he jangled up a few new rounds he had not used before and began smoothly loading them into his pistol. "Now, Murana, enough running. Enough games. It's time you faced your reckoning, as you knew it would happen the moment you left us."

Gnashing her teeth, shooting blades with her eyes, she untangled herself from Anthony's snoring body and began to back up on her rump, trying in vain for her forearms to carry her across the foyer and out the front doors where a few cops could still possibly be available. Firearm held at his side, Jack steadily followed her, not even trying to hide the smug look on his face.

"Murana, I thought you were prouder than this. When we were partners, you were fearless. You did not worry about staring death in the face, and yet here you are, sniveling at my feet and trying to run away like a coward." He chortled, admiring his handiwork around him. "There will be no one to save you, not in time anyway. And what hope do you think you'll have out there? That fox? Maybe another predator cop to assist? You and I both know we were trained to be far better than they could ever hope to be."

"Jack, I got out because I didn't want to be like that anymore. We were prisoners under Rosco. He didn't care about us. He only cared about what we could do for him. I wanted out because I wanted control over my own life!" She fired back, consistently looking back to measure how far left she had to shuffle to get out the door.

Jack spread his arms out wide at the devastation around him, "And yet here you are, killing mammals as if you were judge, jury and executioner. You're not any different now than you were then, Murana. Stop lying to yourself. Once a killer, always a killer. You think you're justified in burning criminals just because you have a higher moral imperative? It's time to accept what you are. A murderer. One that I've been ordered to put down to keep the sanctity of our order secret."

"Secret?" Murana scoffed, indicating with her chin to the wounded Judy Hopps just past him. "She's now well aware of who and what we are now. That we exist."

Jack shrugged. "No consequence. I'll be sure to eliminate all witnesses before finishing up here."

"And them…?" Murana paused, her heart catching in her throat. Karnage, Mad Dog and the comatose body of Steven were gone. A small cry escaped her lips.

Before she could think, Jack cocked his gun. "Alright, enough talk. Be a good girl, Murana, and stay still for me."

Drawing every last ounce of strength she had, she scampered on all fours out the doors, ringing gunfire trailing after her, destroying any last remnants of glass on the front entrance. Stumbling down the steps to street level, she crawled weakly to the opposite side of the road, finally collapsing onto the gutter leading up onto the sidewalk. She wheezed wearily as she turned around and faced her impending doom.

Jack glanced over at the huddled form of Nick, protecting Max behind him. The fox was preparing his weapon and getting ready to fire. He would be of no difficulty to Jack. Smiling one last time at Murana, he said, "You were a good friend, for the time we were partners. Believe me when I say I am sincere. I will miss you. Good bye."

Murana closed her eyes as he raised his gun. A squealing of tires shot them open again as both her and Jack's head swiveled to the bright lights bearing down on his position. The car crashed into the bunny, flinging him over several cop cars and shattering through another window, landing him directly into the backseat of a cruiser. There was no further movement.

"Oh my goodness! Did I just hit someone!?" The high-pitched squeal erupted out the driver side door as a skunk padded out to the front of her car. It was Courtney, completely decked out in a full wedding dress. Upon spotting Murana lying on the side of the road, she immediately appeared at her side. "Mrs. Wolford! What happened to you?! After having not heard anything from Steven for a whole day, I thought he had deserted me! Did someone do this to you?! Should I call 911?! Where is Steven now?!"

Murana feebly placed a paw on her arm to calm the hysterical skunk. Whatever had happened in her absence, Murana was confused as to why Courtney would be wearing a wedding gown. Had she been gone with Don Karnage so long that Courtney and her son had already gotten married? Things were starting to blur as darkness fought to consume her. The knife in her side didn't even hurt anymore.

"He's…gone. Taken." Was all she managed to utter before slumping down onto the curb.

"Mrs. Wolford? Mrs. Wolford!" Courtney tried to shake Murana to get her to snap out of it, oblivious to what her condition was.

"Please back up, Ma'am." Nick Wilde urged the skunk back with a paw. "We'll handle it from here."

The fox looked worried as he inspected Murana. The last view Murana had before blanking out was Max hovering over her with a look of disquiet.

* * *

 _Downtown – Mercy Hospital – Southern Savannah off Oasis Plaza_  
 _Saturday – 10:34 AM – Overcast w/Light Drizzle / Variable Winds_

Murana felt like a sack of sand, lethargic and heavy. The weakness in her limbs spread to her very core and made her unwilling to wake up from her feverish dream. Her memories came back to her in fleeting glimpses of ceiling lights, doctors, masks, surgical utensils and family members. She had no concept of time, and she could scarcely recall what she was even doing before falling into the blissful embrace of oblivion.

It was then that a loud creaking sound caused her eyelids to flutter and her pupils to contract as the harsh light from the open window burned through her retinas. Blinking hard and trying to adjust to the sudden glare bouncing off some vent ducts on the roofing of the floor below outside, she deduced she was in a hospital.

Eyes now accustomed to the level of light permeating her room, she began to gaze around her. The room and bed she was on were pretty barebones. There were no tools or sharp objects anywhere near her. It was then that her focus rested on the towering cape buffalo in full ZPD uniform sitting in a backwards facing chair, his arms resting on its backing as he regarded her.

"Well, good morning, sunshine!" The buffalo sneered.

Murana immediately tried to leap off the bed, but was stopped by the handcuffs chaining her to it, one for each wrist and ankle. They were clearly not taking any chances. Frustrated, but giving up for now, she slumped back into the sheets. "What do you want?"

"What do I want? To finally put the infamous Dark Flame Wolf behind bars for the rest of her life." He seemed very happy with this prospect. "I don't believe we've been formally introduced. I am Chief Bogo. Head of the ZPD, Precinct 1. We've been chasing you for a very long time, Mrs. Wolford. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't interested in finally meeting the esteemed vigilante herself in person. To think it was you, of all people, CEO to a prestigious banking company and wife to one of my own officers. You really had us all fooled."

"My family is still out there! Don Karnage has my son!" She snapped, jangling the cuffs again loudly against the bed siding.

"Karnage? I don't know this person you speak of, but I'm sure if I asked your…husband on your behalf, he would fill me in on the details." Bogo didn't seem the least bit concerned about her son.

"You don't understand! Karnage is prepping to leave Zootopia, possibly within a matter of hours. He has not just my son, but tons of kidnapped cubs and kits on his aircraft. We need to get over there and stop him from taking off with all of them!" Murana was furious; it was like this buffalo had no concept of urgency.

Bogo shifted in his chair, leaning forward on it a bit. "You mean that big wreck in Sahara Square? Don't worry, it doesn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. Besides, I have all available men already there to handle the situation. You don't have to worry about a thing. If your son is there, rest assured he will be found and brought home safely." He grinned. "Now, let's talk more about you, Mrs. Wolford."

"There's nothing to talk about." She lay there defiant.

"Oh, I think there is plenty to talk about." Bogo tapped a hoof on the end of Murana's bed. "Since almost the beginning of my career, you've been a thorn in my side. Coming out of nowhere and being wildly erratic in your killing patterns. It wasn't until just this morning that I was briefed by Officer Hopps that you have an actual premeditated motive for the murders you commit. And here I thought you were just some mindless serial killer."

"Clearly it wasn't me lacking mental faculties then." She snarked.

Bogo's brow furrowed as he grunted his displeasure at her jab. He didn't let it outwardly faze him much, but she could tell she hit a nerve. Recovering quickly, he glared at her, "I guess you are good at several types of burning. So, is it a thrill to you, to see your victims burn up painfully and screaming? Do you get off on that sick crap?"

Raising a paw up as best she could with the cuffs and pointing up a finger for clarification, "Actually, they don't scream. I make sure they are thoroughly paralyzed so that doesn't happen. They actually die quietly. Peaceful, you could say." Murana had already placed up a mental wall between her and Bogo. She recognized his type and knew there was nothing to be gained from this conversation.

"You think this is a game, don't you?" His scant humor faded. "Just because those you killed were scum and vile rapists or molesters does not make you justified in murdering them. Burning them alive is equal to torture in my eyes." He pounded the back of the chair to emphasize his point, "There are procedures and laws to follow with these sorts of criminals. Just like there are to deal with vigilantes like you. You are not above the law."

"And these sadists are?!" Murana spat, surging at Bogo as far as the cuffs would allow, heaving in indignity.

"I'm not getting your angle." Bogo muttered without emotion, clearly uninterested.

"It's always the same!" She barked. "The average rapist or molester gets what? Maybe seven to nine years of jail time? Getting out on maybe five with good behavior, provided they even get sentenced in the first place? Even those who murder their victims can be let off easy if the lawyer of the defendant can get them charged only on manslaughter or an insanity plea. Within a span of a decade, they can be let loose on the populace again, free to commit more atrocities. They need to be put down, because there is no justice done here!"

"There is justice done!" Bogo boomed back. "Whenever someone breaks the law, there is a preset punishment that is scalable to the crime committed. The perpetrator is sentenced, does his punishment, gets rehabilitated and is then reintegrated back into society a changed person. That is how it is. We are not in the business of locking people up for life or putting them to death if we can help it! The goal is to remove them from society and ensure they are retrained to do better in the confines of jail or some other such containment facility."

"You can't rehabilitate criminals who don't wish to change! Those twisted fucks will continue their sick ways the moment they're let loose back on the street!" She strained against her shackles. Didn't this buffalo see the logic of her side? "Why do you have so many repeat offenders crossing the doors of your department week in and week out? Because they don't care and they'll do what their base instincts tell them to do! They're only animals, after all!"

"Just like you wouldn't care if we did the same thing with you? Are you telling me that you'd go back to your old ways the moment we put you back on the street?" Bogo was getting frustrated at having to explain this simple concept to the wolf. "There are laws to combat repeat offenders like them and you! After three strikes, they can be put away for life. Something I see happening to you very easily!"

"At the cost of what? Taxpayer's money? You'd rather spend millions of dollars keeping these lowlifes alive for who knows how long until they croak, and in the meantime the victims and their families get no justice or closure for the damage those assholes imposed on them! Even seeing that they are living a very good life in prison with three square meals a day, recreational sports, television, games and more! Who cares about me! I care about those who never got to see justice done for their misery!" She lay back onto her raised bed, satisfied she had made her point. "Your 'laws' and safeguards only seem to protect the criminals you claim to put away rather than give comfort and solace to those who were left behind in their wake."

"So you propose to kill anyone who has done the least bit of wrong?" Bogo was flabbergasted. "Then we'd have chaos as people meted out their own justice. Just because it is deserved doesn't mean it is right."

"No! Just those who pose a threat to the innocents who have done no wrong." Murana was exasperated at this point. She was done with this stubborn buffalo.

"That's pretty vague and I'm not buying it. You can lie to me all you want, Mrs. Wolford, but in the end, you can't lie to yourself." He stood up, roughly placing the chair off to the side of the room up against the wall. "You are a criminal and you will be tried like one. External circumstances such as family, connection to one of my officers and CEO of a bank be damned." He pointed a finger hoof at her with intent. "Once I'm done with your case, I'll make sure you are put away for life. Enjoy the last days of your freedom now."

With a huff, he stormed out and slammed the door behind him. Murana was enraged. Did nobody understand what she was trying to do? Did nobody care that her son and many other innocent children would be taken by Karnage soon? That their own souls would be sucked out forever? She screamed out into the empty room, her howl full of anguish and despair. She wilted into the bed, exhausted from the exertion, her side still hurting from the removed dagger.

And then she wept.

* * *

 _Arranging all the puzzle pieces of this massive action sequence was insane. Each character had their specific role to play in keeping every protagonist alive. Ron and Max each played a part in getting Murana back to Karnage. Judy helped Ron take down Karnage. Jack dealt with the entire pirate problem while introducing a new action set piece with the cop showdown. Nick assisted in getting Max out of there, while Jack placed Steven in a position to be taking by Karnage. An unexpected character from Steven's part of the story coming back to assist in an unlikely way. All of these beats were carefully planned out and I agonized for several days how it would all fit together. One of the major things I wanted to impart on the reader was the supernatural element to the pirates, something that could only be demonstrated in this way. Explanations will soon follow, but it is enough to draw significant attention to it._

 _The second scene with Bogo went through several iterations before I landed on a solid throughline for their argument together. I wanted to figure out a core concept that they would be fighting over and to present both sides to the issue. One from the side of someone who is sworn to uphold the law and one from a victim who has been burned from the very same law. Two present two sides that have equally valid points based on their life experiences and personal values. Definitely a good fight and one that ends the chapter on an ominous cliffhanger._


	18. Saturday - Darkest Before the Dawn - Afn

_Downtown – Mercy Hospital – Southern Savannah off Oasis Plaza_  
 _Saturday – 2:58 PM – Overcast Skies / Steady Rain w/Light Gusts_

Murana's sleep was restless. Her sides hurt and it seemed every part of her body ached. After Chief Bogo had left, she inspected herself and realized they had done some emergency surgery to reclose the open stomach wounds from Javier, complete with stitches. They also removed the knife Ronald had placed between her ribs. Although it still hurt something fierce now that the pain medications were wearing off, she was glad to have it gone, with nothing left but a huge taped gauze patch to soak up blood.

This time, her dreams were interrupted by yet another person sitting in the lone chair at the end of her hospital bed. She opened her eyes to behold her husband, Anthony. He had his detective uniform on, probably having been on duty since early this morning. On his face was a mixture of displeasure and what looked like pity. With his arms crossed and tail swishing, she could sense he was very agitated.

"Don't look at me like that." Murana turned away to stare out the window.

"Look at you like what?" He monotoned, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Like you're ashamed of me." She hated feeling that she had disappointed others. She knew the look and she abhorred it.

"More like I'm saddened and hurt." He expressed at last. "Murana, we've been married not even two years and you've been keeping secrets from me. Not even small ones either, but life-changing, earth-shattering secrets."

"What would you have me do? Tell my would-be suitor that I fell in love with that we can't marry because I'm a vigilante who kills criminals and he's a cop sworn to uphold the law? Yeah, that would have gone over well." She turned to him, bitterness in her eyes.

"Then we shouldn't have gotten married in the first place!" He raised a paw out to her, keeping the other over his chest.

"That hurts…it's like you feel it would have been better had we not even gotten together at all, that there was no love there to begin with." She held his gaze, letting him feel her misery through her eyes.

"What hurts more is the fact that you put more than just me through these lies. You lied to and even utilized Steven to your own ends in your pursuit of justice. Now, you've even dragged Max into it. This is not fair to either kit." He refolded his arms again, trying to keep a level tone.

Murana scoffed, "Since when did you care about either one of those boys? You made it quite clear you didn't accept either of them as a part of your family."

Anthony scratched his chin a few times, "I'll admit, I have my own faults too. I am not too keen on the fact that I probably won't ever have proper children with you. Both now because of your infertile womb and that Bogo has it out for you to do life for what you've done. Before all this went down, I was thinking long and hard about what I wanted for our marriage."

"Probably wasn't for that long, because it seems you're about ready to give up on it again." She rattled her left cuff a bit to ease the pressure it was putting on her joint. "Shouldn't you be back at your job? I'm surprised your boss let you visit me at all considering your connection to me."

"He actually doesn't know I'm here." This got Murana's attention, but he continued on as if he didn't notice this. "I pulled a favor from Nick Wilde to cover me while I came over to talk with you."

She eyed him suspiciously, "You're here with a purpose. Why does that not make me feel any better?"

"It shouldn't." He nodded, flexing his folded arms. "You have a lot to answer for and I want to know it all. For the longest time since I found out you were the Dark Flame Wolf, deep down, I refused to believe it. I kept hoping and praying that it wasn't true, but the more I got confirmation from Steven and seeing you in action this morning, I couldn't ignore the ugly truth. My wife is a murderous vigilante. I figured I could get over this, but I cannot. Not until I find out why you do it."

"Why else? It's exactly what it looks like. Criminals do bad things. I go and kill them. Simple." She was terse with her response.

Anthony vehemently shook his head, "Nuh-uh, I'm not willing to believe that. Throughout our entire, dare I say it, sham of a marriage, you've been keeping back secrets from me: your nightmares, the picture on your nightstand and more. You've closed yourself off from the one person you vowed to be truthful and loyal to. How do you think that makes me feel? There's a deeper reason for why you do these things and I want to know answers. I deserve that much at least."

"What would it matter?" Murana looked defeated, letting her arms sag and pull on the length of the handcuffs. "You're just going to divorce me now and I'm going to be put away for the rest of my life. Not to mention I'm going to lose my son, Steven, nor can I get Max out of the horrible situation he's in."

"Murana, despite all the shit going on between us and the things you've done, I still have love for you." Anthony's words drew a curious look from her. "If you want me to even attempt to go to bat for you in any manner possible, I'm going to want the truth. All of it."

"Where's Max first?" She interrupted, looking anxious.

Anthony rolled his eyes, "He's safe with your…erm, secretary. Ron, I think his name was? Last night was a bit of a blur. The otter said he would take Max in for now until this all blew over and we figure out what to do with him."

Murana breathed a sigh of relief. Although she could have probably picked any number of better guardians for Max, she reasoned Ron probably wasn't the worst choice. Given what she had seen and observed this past evening, she had a gut feeling that Ron would not harm him. So although she was now well aware of where he heralded from, he was ironically the safest option for Max. With the skills Ron was trained with, she didn't have to worry about Max's well-being.

"The truth, now, Murana." Anthony repeated. His face offered no reprieve or excuse. He was determined to get the answers he sought or he would let her wallow in the grave she had dug for herself.

"And what truth is that? You need to be more specific, Anthony." Murana caved. She knew there would be no escape from her fate. What did it matter if she was now forced to relive the demons she tried to suppress for so long?

"Why the burning of your victims? You don't seem to kill any other way. What started all of this for you?" He edged forward on his chair, eager to know the answers.

She wrinkled the skin of her muzzle in disgust, "Did your boss put you up to this?"

He jerked his head back, "What? No! I'm genuinely wanting to know why my wife would commit such atrocities under my very nose since we've been married."

"Oh, dear," She sighed. "I've been doing this far longer than we've been together. I probably have done far more than you're even aware of."

"I gathered that. I gave you the benefit of the doubt yesterday, being dragged back to AJ's Fox Den in search of supposed 'supplies.' Finding nothing but ruin, I followed you across Zootopia until we finally got to your bank, where we were attacked by no less than three different factions by my best guess. You've made quite a lot of enemies. That is absolutely insane to me, coming from someone that I consider my wife. So yeah, start at the beginning. I want to hear all of it." He relaxed in his chair, settling in. "I got all afternoon, if need be."

"Not that it matters, but I was born the runt of the litter. Born into a home that couldn't care less about kits." Murana began haltingly.

She never really revealed this to anyone, and at this point, she didn't really give much of a damn. If anything, it whiled away the time before her inevitable sentence to prison that, if Bogo had his way, would be forever. She didn't have high hopes that she'd ever see Steven again either, with Karnage probably going to suck his soul out sooner or later. She had to fight to keep from tearing up at the thought.

She looked back up as Anthony cleared his throat, "How does this have anything to do with you being the Dark Flame Wolf and immolating victims alive?"

Murana glared at his impatience. "I'm getting there." Flexing out her ankles from being bed-ridden so long, she continued, "Being born into such an abusive and disgustingly unkept home, most of my brothers and sisters died off except for one. I had a younger brother who was just as much of a runt as I was." She sneered bitterly. "Ironic that the two runts were the only ones able to survive the mistreatment and neglect."

Anthony's eyebrows raised at this, but he let her go on, "I remember it clearly. It was to be the night I had planned for my brother and I to escape that hellhole. That very night my sick, sadistic mother brought her latest boyfriend and his friends over for a ritual gathering. They had chosen my little brother as a sacrifice and forced me to be part of the instrument that led to his death. They forced me to pour oil onto him while her boyfriend lit the match."

"Fucking hell…I'm so sorry, Murana. I had no idea." Anthony's mouth dropped open at this reveal. He thought on it a moment. "Was this brother the same one with you in that red wagon on your nightstand?" He referenced the picture with a grave face.

Murana nodded, "He was. He was the only true family I ever knew. They would shave us of all our fur for shits and giggles, thinking it hilarious that we were naked and exposed. They would leave us chained in the basement for days on end with nothing but stale bread and musty water while we sat in our filth that they wouldn't clean up."

"I can't believe they did that to you!" Anthony was aghast, such barbarism was beyond his comprehension. He had never heard of such a horrid case. "And they had you watch him burn to death?"

She bowed her head, "One of the worst moments of my life."

"Are they still out there? Have they been arrested or brought to justice?" He was getting furious on her account, despite everything she had done. If they were indirectly the cause of her actions by their cruel upbringing of her, he wouldn't rest until they were taken down.

Shaking her head, "No…I took care of that." At a look from Anthony, she explained, "A few weeks later, our town was attacked by Don Karnage and his gang. I was stolen away with a bunch of other cubs. I don't remember how long I was with them, but I had grown quickly as a favored protégé of Karnage. He would train me, use me to gratify himself and more. I was his to own."

Anthony was bristling. If he had known all this about that fox back at the bank, he wasn't sure he would have been able to contain himself from mauling the pirate on sight. "So you were forced to steal, be a pirate and such? How did you escape?" He was leaning forward now, very interested in her story.

Murana snorted, "Yeah…I was his 'star-pupil.' I was a natural at everything he asked me to do. The fact I was an unassuming runt of a wolf, almost the size of a large fox, was even better and made me far less of a target than some of the other cubs as they grew older. Most of what I learned in how to fight, I learned from him." She reminisced a few moments, her eyes glazed over. "I don't even remember how I escaped. I think it was a fluke."

At a grunt from Anthony, Murana expounded, "I was deathly terrified of Karnage. Afraid I would outlive my usefulness and suddenly my soul would be sucked out of my body and be left a lifeless husk."

"How is that even possible?" Anthony was incredulous. "That sounds almost like magic or some sort of demonic sorcery."

Murana tried her best to shrug. "Even I don't know. Each pirate has a piece of some totem Karnage found a long time ago that they use to do this. I don't know much more than that. I don't even know where it came from nor how it split. All I know is that regardless of if I was living with my bastard parents or with Karnage, I was always living in fear for my life."

"Yet you still escaped." Anthony pressed, guiding her back to the story.

"Mhmm, as I said, I think it was a fluke. I think he had grown so accustomed to my subservience that he never expected I had been planning a mutiny for months. They caught wind of it eventually, of course, but not before we had veered off course so much that it gave me the opportunity to jump ship. It was then he gave me these scars." She puffed out her belly in an attempt to get part of the patient gown to slip.

Anthony got up and padded over to slide the front of the gown aside, with some assistance from Murana, revealing the three long scars extending from just above her navel down towards her loins. Anthony was hesitant to gloss over the healed lacerations with his paw, unsure of what the etiquette was between a husband and wife in this unusual circumstance.

"I always wondered where these came from. Is…is this why you cannot conceive cubs, or were you truly barren from the start?" Things were clicking into place for him.

"I don't know." Murana honestly didn't. "I've been pregnant before."

Anthony's eyes bulged. "What?" He drew back a few paces.

She gave him a cross look, "This was before our time, Anthony. Don't get upset. I wasn't the pristine flower you think I am."

"Ain't that the truth." He clucked.

"Watch it." She squinted. "I've been pregnant several times before, however all attempts ended up in a miscarriage. I don't know if it is because of these scars or if somehow my womb was damaged from the start, but I can't seem to carry anything to even second term. To avoid the pain of losing yet another child, I just resorted to birth control. It was easier to just suppress the capacity to breed than deal with another bloody mess of misery and loss." She tried to remain strong, but tears were welling up in her eyes at the memory of it. Anthony moved in to hug her, but she snapped at him, "Don't try it! Not in the mood!"

"Look, I want to be on your side, Murana, I do. But it is really hard when you have all this evidence stacked against you." Exasperated, he walked back over to the chair and flopped back down onto it. "My hands at the moment are pretty tied, Chief Bogo saw to that. I just came here to at least understand my wife and why you do all these things. Now at long last, I think I'm finally getting it."

"That's a start." Murana didn't care how that sounded, she just wanted to be left alone right now. Feeling Anthony staring at her, she rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'll continue. So, Karnage injured me, but I got him right back, chomping a good portion of his ear right off. He hasn't forgotten that insult." She smirked at the memory.

"After getting away from him, I stumbled across Zootopia, lost, alone and hungry. I took up thievery. It wasn't long before I was noticed by the crime syndicate known as The Arbiter's Hand. I was scouted and inducted into this guild by Rosco, their leader. He used my talents to train me further into becoming a highly effective assassin. My codename was Widowmaker." She curled her lip; she was never really fond of the name.

Anthony looked skeptical. "You were an assassin too? This just keeps getting stranger."

She was broken from her thoughts, shooting him an odd stare. "What do you mean? This has been my life for as long as I can remember."

"It just seems…too fantastical though." Anthony tried to reason it out. "Starting from horrible beginnings, captured and trained by pirates, escaping to Zootopia and brought in to be an assassin for a guild nobody has ever heard of before. It just seems too implausible."

"As implausible as your wife being the Dark Flame Wolf?" She cocked an eyebrow.

"Good point." He huffed. "Still, it just seems very…" He crossed his arms as he looked out the window in thought. "…very contrived."

Narrowing her eyes, her tone grew cold, "Well, you asked about why I burn criminals. If you don't like what I have to say, I can stop."

He raised both paws up to stay her anger, "No, it's fine. I still want to hear it all. I'm just saying that most others will have a hard time believing that all of this happened to you, one bad thing after another." Anthony cleared his throat. "You were saying, Widowmaker?"

Murana regarded him a few moments before resuming, "Yes, that was what they called me. I was one of their best operatives. I had become an expert marksman and hit more contracts than anyone on record. Despite this, I was denied the opportunity to use my skills to go after the two wolves I wanted to kill the most: my mother and her boyfriend. I had known of their whereabouts for quite some time, but was forbidden by Rosco from ever striking them." Her paws balled up into fists as she bared her teeth.

Anthony was confused, "Why didn't he ever let you kill them? It doesn't seem like it would hurt his operations much. Especially if they've been flying under the radar this entire time."

"Oh, but it would." Her gaze flicked back up to his. "The Arbiter's Hand was nothing if not reputable in the dark circles of Zootopia. If it came to light that one of their operatives went rogue and began hitting targets not sanctioned for death, it would bring great shame to the guild and they would swiftly lose contracts and be run down and killed by competing factions."

"I honestly can't believe something like this exists right under the nose of the ZPD." Anthony seemed utterly astonished at all of it. His mind reeled at this influx of information.

"There's a lot that happens that most of the common people in Zootopia do not know about. It is probably best that way." Murana sniffed, finding the current line of talk boring.

She was feeling very tired again now and just wanted to sleep. It was clear nothing she said could change the authority Anthony had over her situation. So to finish the story, she skipped ahead to the part he wanted to hear most.

"I killed them anyway. I went outside my parameters on one specific hit. I was close to their position during one mission and I couldn't help myself. I wanted to punish them. To show them how much they deserved what was coming to them. So…I burned them alive, just like how my brother died." She grit her teeth.

"Murana…" Anthony shuddered. He could imagine the brutal scene in his mind's eye.

She waved off his concern, "Oh, but I had to! It's so much different up close, you know that? It's so easy to pop off a round and see someone's life end from miles away, but it's an entirely different beast when you can see them writhe in agony and hear the screams in your ears. They deserved it though."

Shaking off the memory, which already brought tremors to her body, Murana forged onward, "Regardless, I was outed from the guild and I had to go underground. That was when I met AJ, and through him, Billy Silva. They sheltered me for a time until the majority of the witch hunt blew over. I was to establish a new life and identity. I took on the name of Delante and set course for a new path in Zootopia."

Anthony whistled. "That seems pretty rough. According to Officer Hopps, it seems they still found you in the end."

"Of course. That's what happens when you get sloppy in my line of work. I wasn't always this way. I got lax." Murana chided herself. "Guess I was never meant to lead a quiet life. I always have to keep looking over my shoulder. I had hoped that I finally put my past behind me."

She half wondered if it was because she got a family and grew accustomed to having a normal life that brought about the events that led to this morning. If she had just stayed in the shadows, secretly operating from whatever base Billy was currently residing at, being known only as the Dark Flame Wolf, would she still have been found out? Only when she put herself out there as Murana Delante did things seem to fall apart. However, it was definitely a good long decade before it all came crashing down around her.

"Well, masquerading as the Dark Flame Wolf didn't earn you any points towards that goal, Murana." Anthony pointed out the obvious. "What made you think it was a good idea to continue moonlighting as a vigilante and marrying a cop at the same time? Knowing what I was and based on everything you've told me, you should have just run the other way, yet you didn't. Why marry me?"

"It's not that simple. With you, I-" Murana began, but was jolted by a knock on the door.

"Excuse me." A familiar voice rang through the slightly open door. A tawny-colored wildebeest peeked through the opening. "I hope I'm not disturbing anything?"

Anthony looked surprised, standing up from his chair. "Ralph! What are you doing here? How is your wife?"

Ralph looked back and forth between the two, "She's stable at least, thank you. Does Chief Bogo know you're here with her?" He asked warily.

"Does he know _you_ are?" Anthony retorted, folding his arms.

"Touché." Ralph grunted, entering into the room fully before shutting the door behind him. He caught the eye of Murana, who was looking at him curiously. "I was actually sent to find you. Officer Wilde said he had a new lead on that case. He said you'd know what he was talking about." He seemed purposefully vague to keep Murana out of the loop.

Anthony's body sagged. This was the last thing he wanted to deal with right now. Despite all she had done, this past hour had gotten him closer to his wife than the entire year prior, and he didn't want it to end. "Fine. I was just heading out anyway." He nodded to Murana. "I'll be back to check in with you when I can, ba-…um, Murana." He caught himself. Feeling awkward, he moved to the door, checking himself as he saw Ralph lingering behind. "You coming?"

"I'll stay behind a bit. I need to talk to the suspect." Ralph used the word suspiciously.

"The chief said not to interact with her until proper procedures are followed." Anthony reminded.

Ralph gave him a knowing look, daring him to call himself out on the hypocrisy, "I won't tell him if you won't."

Anthony's eyes darted between Ralph's and Murana's. "Very well. Just make it quick. I don't know when he'll come back to escort her to more secure holdings."

"Understood." They gave each other a gentlemanly nod as Anthony shut the door and strode down the hallway. The silence was broken as Murana cracked her wrist, trying to smooth out the kinks from being held in cuffs for so long. Stepping forward politely, Ralph remained standing, "I apologize for coming in unannounced. In case you forgot, my name is Ralph Grayz."

Murana clucked her tongue, finding the sentiment laughable. "Please, you don't have to apologize to me. I'm just some low-life criminal."

"Yes, a criminal who helps her community, supports local orphanages, donates to a multitude of charities, fights for the rights of the oppressed and the defenseless and adopts kits that are in desperate need of a family. You are more than just someone who murders for the fun of it." Ralph was sincere, his hooves clasped before him.

This caught Murana off guard, she was not expecting this sort of merciful description of who she was from someone like Ralph. "Are you making fun of me?" She didn't really know what game Ralph was playing at.

Gripping what looked like a plastic bag in his hooves, he shook his head. "No, ma'am. After what I have seen and heard this week, I decided to do research on my own time about you. I'm frankly amazed you've managed to juggle so much all these years. I'm not sure if Dark Flame Wolf is the cover for your generous side or the other way around, but you've got quite a bit of influence in Zootopia, even if not a lot know your name. It would be a shame to see that all disappear when you are put away in prison."

A measure of respect washed across her face as she beheld Ralph in a new light. She grinned, "And here I thought you were a by-the-numbers rookie cop, interpreting the law black and white and accepting nothing but what the rules allowed. You've grown up." She sniggered.

He nickered at the jab, but proceeded to ignore it as he clopped over to the end of her bed, "I may not approve of what you do. In fact, I absolutely detest it."

"That makes me feel real good." She lay there, looking up at the tall wildebeest, feeling a bit helpless like this. She remembered how bad he rammed her into that dumpster the first night they met.

"I'm just stating my views." Ralph tapped a hoof on the bed railing. "Despite that, I do see a lot of good you do. I'm no psychiatrist, but I do study people. Looking through all you've done, it does seem like you are making up for something, as if you are trying to erase a lot of bad with a ton of good. Much of it seems genuine, but a lot seems like you're grasping at straws to make your own self feel better."

"Are you trying to make me feel worse or do you have a point in coming here, Ralph?" Murana stewed a bit, miffed that her flaws were blatantly being pointed out by this young cop who appeared to know better than she did.

Ralph chuckled, "I don't blame you for being upset. My wife hates it when I do this to her, too. However, I studied psychology in college before switching over to law and becoming a police officer, so I can see threads of purpose behind people's actions. Right now, I feel like your actions are telling me that you want an escape from something. That you are still running away from something that you've involved yourself in too deeply and now you feel like there is no way out."

Murana's entire body wilted in the tight cuffs. "I'm kinda feeling that way now."

Ralph mused on her situation for a few moments, "I won't argue that point. You did sort of get yourself into this mess." He completely flouted the scowl she sported. "However, I am not without sympathy. You taught me that not everything is as it seems on the surface, and for that, I am thankful. I came here to apologize for how I treated you and my preconceived notions on who you were. I can't promise that I will be able to help your situation, but I will do my best to speak out for a lighter sentence on your behalf."

"Well, that means a lot." Murana didn't seem too convinced.

She wasn't sure if he was saying this from the heart or just paying lip service so he could rid his own conscience of any guilt. In the end, it ultimately didn't matter since she was still shackled to the bed like some wild animal.

"Oh, and to give this to you. I secured it from the evidence bin. Given what I know of your son, Steven, who I heard was kidnapped, I figured this trinket would be appreciated." Ralph said.

Without a further word, he unzipped the baggy and reached over to lay a single pine tree earring on her chest, its forest aroma still emanating from its scented pores. Murana's resolve broke and she began to cry. The weight of Steven's fate lay as heavy on her heart as did the earring. Gazing down at the small gift of love from her adoptive son, she couldn't help but wonder how much different things would have been had she not taken that final mark with Javier Sanchez. Would they still be together as mother and son today?

"It's all my fault…" She sobbed. "I failed him. I should've listened." It was beginning to get harder and harder to understand her words.

Standing uneasily at her bedside as she wept, Ralph grew solemn and proper. "Let me know if there is anything I can do for you. I will be taking my leave now…I'm sorry, Mrs. Wolford."

He was nearly to the door when she called out to him, causing him to turn his head back to her, hoof already on the doorknob. "Cherish your family, Ralph. Don't let them slip away from you. Fight for them. Don't make the same mistakes I did. Go be with your wife." Murana tried her best to smile through the tears.

Ralph's face dissolved with grief. "Thank you…I already do."

He gently shut the door behind him with a click. Murana was left to her thoughts on her life, contemplating the culminating future of all her decisions. Despite the dark well she allowed her mind to sink to again and again, her sanity kept coming back to the bright green tree resting on her chest.

* * *

 _Sahara Square – Northern Sand Dunes – Three Miles Northwest of the Oasis Hotel & Casino_  
 _Saturday – 10:12 PM – Dark, Overcast Skies / Pouring Rain w/Electric Currents_

It seemed to be quite the blur, these past few hours. Murana could scarcely believe that she was in a police cruiser, zooming down the tunnel through the barrier wall into Sahara Square with Ralph Grayz, Ronald Latrinae and her son-to-be Max Thrash. The wildebeest was driving since it was his assigned vehicle. She was in the passenger seat with Max sitting right behind her. Ronald was right next to him, building a few weapons made from a variety of parts he had brought with him in a bag. Each one of them wasn't even blinking an eye at her sitting among them in full suit, mask and all. It was surreal.

Murana remembered waking up long after the sun had gone down, with constant rain pelting the side of her room window. Ron was standing on the foot of the bed, a bag placed by her hind paws as he was rummaging through it to pull out her vigilante suit he had procured from her office back at the bank. Beside him was Max, gently nudging her arm to get her to awaken softly.

"Hey, Max." Ron asked without looking at the raccoon, still unfurling the last bits of her suit onto the bedsheets. "Can you unhook her from those restraints while I get her gear ready? Do it just like I taught you."

Without another word, Max dug into his pockets, pulled out a few metal lockpicks and began working on the cuffs one by one. Murana's awareness began to rack into focus quickly as each limb was freed from the confining grip of the metal rings.

"What are you two doing here?" She was a bit confused, but not ungrateful for her newfound freedom.

"Rescuing you, of course, so we can go rescue your son from Karnage." Ron beamed as he dropped the final bit of clothing onto her suit: the gloves.

"Does anyone else know you are doing this?" She stretched out her legs and rubbed her wrists as Max undid the final shackle.

"Not a one!" Ron winked. He gestured over to Max with a smile, "It was his idea actually. He reasoned that if you're going to be put away for life anyway, you might as well go out with a bang and get rid of that pirate while saving all the kits in the process. Who knows? It just might score some bonus points for you, and you already know by now that I don't really follow the law when it comes to my real job. So, we're here to make sure you get one last shot at finishing your job."

"You did this, for me?" A few tears began to form as she looked at Max. At a nod, she brought him close to her in a full embrace, rubbing the back of his head and not wanting to ever let go. At first rigid, Max seemed to just melt into her touch. Presently, she released him and rotated her finger in a circle, "Can you two please turn around while I suit up?"

Obliging her request, they looked out the glass pane onto Zootopia. The view was ironically facing Sahara Square where they could just barely see the floodlights of the ZPD trained on the Iron Vulture, just out of view beyond the wall, its malevolent field of energy visible. After a few minutes, Murana coughed and they turned to see her in full attire, complete with mask. She truly did look like a superhero to Max, regardless of what others said of her.

"What's the plan?" She queried, adjusting the fit on one of her gloves. This was probably one of the oldest suits Billy made for her. It didn't quite fit like it used to, being a bit tight around the middle.

"I was hoping you would tell us." Ron replied. "I know next to nothing of this Karnage fellow or anything his crew and ship are capable of. We're relying on you to fill us in on the details."

"And what of Jack Savage? Did he get captured too?" She asked a bit more warily.

"No one has seen him." Max offered, walking up to her and looking straight at her mask, which gave the impression to her he was staring directly at her eyes.

"Max is right." Ron swished his tail in slight agitation. "From what I heard, after that skunk, Courtney, nailed him with her car, he simply vanished. He might still be out there, but he's currently not in the vicinity."

"Is Courtney alright?" It seemed like an odd question for Murana to ask, but the last thing she wanted was another hapless civilian involved in her affairs. All because she asked her to keep Steven company that one morning.

"Last I checked, the ZPD escorted her home and they are ensuring she doesn't get within several city blocks of your position." Ron chuckled a bit. "She didn't seem happy about this."

Suddenly reminded of seeing her in a wedding dress while at the side of the road, she could only imagine the shenanigans that had gone on in her absence between Courtney and Steven. Murana guessed it was only natural Courtney would be distraught over the kidnapping and disappearance of Steven. She was just the same.

"Well, let's not waste time. We need to get to Sahara Square immediately." Murana took a few confident steps towards the door before faltering and having to be held up by both Max and Ron. "Fuck! That still hurts!" She gripped a paw to her ribs where Ron stabbed her.

The otter grimaced at the reaction, "I truly am sorry, Murana, for doing that. Do you think you got the strength to carry on?"

She made a valiant effort to get back onto her paws, but shook her head firmly. "No…not as I am now. I need a little boost."

"How are you going to find that? I don't think both of us can lift you and carry you the whole way." Max was being too logical for his own good. Murana couldn't help but smile at his naivety.

"Not that kind of boost, hun." She ruffled his ears. "I mean a medicinal boost. I was here earlier this week…for reasons." She didn't really want to say in front of Max that her sole reason for being here earlier was to kill Sanchez, even if Ron could guess at her motives. "There's a drug station on the first floor where I could find something to tide me over, at least for a few hours." At a thought, she turned back to the bed. "Hey, Ron? Search those sheets for something looking like a pine tree earring. Can you keep it safe for me?"

Understanding completely, Ron snapped his fingers and they both assisted Murana out the door after he had gotten the precious item she asked for, stuffing it safely into his slacks' pocket. On either side of the door were two cops, but she noticed they were strangely still and appeared to be leaning up against the wall sleeping. She grinned as she shared a knowing look with Ron. They had been subdued, but not killed, in his quest to reach her this night.

The hallways and elevators were a haze as they made their way around the nurse and cop patrols. It wouldn't be long before they discovered her missing from her bed. Between the three of them, they managed to evade most of the personnel working at Mercy Hospital and deftly entered the medicine closet without a single witness.

Murana scavenged through the shelves and cabinets until she found what she wanted. A full dose of Equinephrine. Her paws shook as she tried to rip open the plastic wrapping around the lengthy needle tube. Not caring about any of the pill bottles spilling onto the counter as she navigated the labels, she found one named Ulfuram. Popping the top off, she dropped a few pills onto the counter as she readied her arm for the shot injection.

Ron surveyed the medicines she was taking with a worried look, "Are you sure these are good to mix together? I think they might end up doing more harm than good in the long run."

"I don't have a choice!" She snapped, tightening the elastic rubber from a drawer around her bicep with her teeth to ensure a vein was visibly popping in the crook of her arm. "Not that I'm trying to constantly remind you that it's your fault, but it really is your fault I'm resorting to these measures just to keep up with the Karnage situation. Are you going to help me or not?"

Doubtful of the final result of these drugs, Ron sighed as he took the needle and sifted through her fur to find an appropriate vein. Max stared on with extreme interest at close range as the otter punctured her skin and pumped the entire vial into her bloodstream. Murana immediately popped the two painkillers into her mouth and swallowed. Within minutes, her pupils dilated and her breathing became fast and short as the adrenaline began taking hold.

Placing a paw on either side of her face, Ron looked her directly in the eyes, "Are you going to be okay, Murana?"

She nodded with certainty, "Let's just get this over with. I want my son back."

"You are one amazing wolf." He marveled.

"Let's save the compliments." She barked, standing up too quickly and staggering.

No sooner had they left the medicine cabinet that the door across the hall, two rooms down, opened to reveal Ralph Grayz. Stepping out, he looked both ways and spotted the three of them. His eyes widening as he recognized her vigilante suit.

"Hey, you!" He pointed a hoof, his expression changing to one of determination.

"Max, I'm starting to think this might have been a bad idea." Ron said out of the corner of his mouth.

"I got this." Max said confidently, avoiding their grasping paws as he scuttled up to Ralph, blocking his path and forcing him to look down and notice him. "Excuse me, sir?" He raised a paw, admiring the wildebeest's impressive horns as he spoke, "My name is Max Thrash, and that wolf back there is going to be my future mom."

"She…what?" Ralph was flustered at this unexpected raccoon.

"However, she is distraught and just took a ton of potentially bad medications just to keep walking so she can go save her other son from Karnage, a very bad pirate that can suck the souls of people and add their life to his own. If we don't catch his ship, the Iron Vulture, crashed out in Sahara Square, before he fixes it and takes off, she will lose her son forever and every single orphan cub and kit on that ship could die as well. Do you want to have all those lives on your conscience just because you thought stopping a masked vigilante was far more important?" Max blinked innocently a few times as Ralph stared at him with something akin to abject horror.

"Why did I let you talk me into this?" Ralph's eyes were like slits as he drove down the dark tunnel, interspersed by ceiling lights at intervals. Glancing over at the masked vigilante next to him, seatbelt securely fastened, he tapped a hoof to the steering wheel.

"I could still be with my wife and son right now, who desperately needs medical attention, but the doctors won't make a move until the quagmire that is my insurance situation is resolved. Nobody seems to want to take responsibility for the operation and I may be stuck footing the bill, which would put my entire family broke and onto the street, and yet here I am, assisting a known and wanted criminal in taking down some crazy, soul-sucking pirate in a flying airship from centuries ago." He seemed slightly bordering on controlled hysteria.

Her hind paw tapping incessantly on the car floor, Murana reached out a paw and softly laid it on Ralph's thigh as she tossed him a reassuring smile. "I know this all sounds insane and crazy, but trust me, my life has been anything but normal. This is par for the course. You are doing a good thing here, Ralph."

Ralph laughed apprehensively, keeping his eyes on the road, "Ha! Yeah…this was not what I expected my first week to be like coming to Zootopia. That's for sure! Being an accomplice to a well-known criminal, I'm going to be fired when this is all over!"

"I'll put in a good word for you." Ron assuaged, snapping the last piece into the gun frame with a click. "I think the good will definitely outweigh the bad."

Viewing the otter through his rear view mirror, Ralph was not appeased, "You'll have to forgive me, but that really isn't comforting right now. I have no idea who you are. I had thought you were her secretary, but now I'm not so sure. As far as I'm concerned, you're probably no better than she is!" He jabbed a hoof finger in Murana's direction. "No offense." He added as an afterthought.

"None taken." She smirked, resuming her vigil on the road ahead.

Murana couldn't blame Ralph. In the few scant meetings she'd had with him, he seemed to be a very devout apprentice of the law. She could tell he had his limits tested recently and this was quite unlike anything he'd probably experienced before. She wanted to address the topic more, but her heart was all aflutter. She could feel it beating out of her chest. If she didn't get out soon and get some action in, she feared she might explode from being seated for so long after taking that adrenaline. She couldn't even feel the pain anymore from her ribs.

"This is very bad. I should have just stayed with Stella and Rodney." Ralph's face drooped as the end of the tunnel came into sight. "This could cost me my job and my ability to seek medical help for them."

"He's freaking out." Max noted helpfully.

Murana gave Ralph another reassuring squeeze, "You could just tell them that we knocked you out and stole your vehicle. Nobody has to know you aided us. Tell me more about your wife and son. What's going on with them?" She was trying to keep his mind off what he was doing, distancing himself from the potential laws he was breaking by helping her out and allowing the escape.

Focusing on the topic, Ralph continued to drive straight, "My wife has always had weak lungs, but she recently contracted bronchitis. We thought it'd go away with some meds and fluids, but weeks went by and then months. She wasn't getting any better. We don't know what's wrong. We had come here to get help for Rodney's legs, to get him prosthetic replacements so he could walk finally, but now we're stuck here with an even bigger problem with Stella and no supportive insurance on file."

"I'm…I'm sorry, Ralph." She withdrew her paw, deciding it best to not give him false hope. "I don't know if there is anything I can do to help right now, but if things turn out the way I want it to, I promise I'll do what I can to find a solution."

Ralph shot her a sidelong glance as he grunted with reserved appreciation. "Thank you."

"We're here." Ron interrupted, tapping Ralph on the shoulder. "Eyes ahead."

They opened out on the lone road leading into the square proper. The major downtown district of the Sahara was still a few miles in front of them, but the large Iron Vulture loomed off to their left deep into the dunes. The crackling field was gone now as several groups of ZPD could be seen like black bunches of bodies slowly making their way towards the aircraft.

"What the hell are they doing?" Murana slapped the dashboard as she leaned forward. "They're going to get themselves killed."

"The electrical field is down." Max pointed out.

Murana recognized his observation, "Which means they will have the power to fire upon them without mercy!" She ripped the cruiser's walkie from its holster and shoved it in front of Ralph's snout. "See if you can get them to pull back, now!"

Without wasting a moment, he snatched it from her and brought it to his lips, "All units, this is Officer Grayz. That aircraft in Sahara Square is going to fire. Stand down and retreat! Fall back!"

"Grayz? What the hell you doing on this channel?" The cantankerous voice of Bogo boomed through the speaker.

"Trying to avoid a disaster, sir!" Ralph rejoined promptly, his eyes rapt on the building current rumbling through the antenna fixed atop the Vulture.

"You were not assigned to this duty, Grayz. You are to-" Bogo crackled and fizzed out as lightning struck the visible rod on the ship.

"Shit! It's happening!" Murana gripped the car seat as Ralph swerved it to the side of the road, windshield wipers going full blast so they could see what was happening through the rain.

All noise seemed to fade before several concussive booms were heard. Brilliant flashes of white lightning surged out of the twin dipole rods extending out from either side of the Vulture's 'mouth.' They arced and created a swath of devastation across the scattered members of the ZPD. Some bolts struck the column of vehicles parked along the road nearly a half-mile away. The rain did little to effectively halt the fires resulting from the attack.

"What's that sound?" Max's ears twitched as the rising hum irritated his senses.

"They're lifting off…" Murana's mouth dropped.

The propellers along the twin ballast balloons on either side of the Vulture began to sputter to life and twirl at an insane rate of speed. Slowly but surely, sand was kicked up, obscuring the aircraft from view as it rose into the air. A few more lightning blasts surged out of the pole cannons and leveled a few smaller buildings with explosive fires. The Iron Vulture was airborne once again.

"We've failed. We didn't make it." Murana slammed a fist on the glove compartment dashboard.

"Do you think we can chase it down?" Max was entranced at the full scope of the Vulture in flight.

Murana shook her head. "We wouldn't have a clear path to follow it no matter which direction it headed. The moment they leave the outskirts of Zootopia, we may never see them again."

Their attention was diverted when a loud revving of engines signaled the arrival of a fox on a motorcycle, his white tail visibly drenched in the rain. He seemed to be stopped alongside the cruiser purposefully, waiting for them to acknowledge him. Rolling the window down and letting the rain into the car, Murana peered out curiously at the strange visitor.

Raising the visor on his helmet, a pair of familiar eyes smiled back at her. "Whew, you are a hard person to track down, Murana, or should I say, Dark Flame Wolf? It's a good thing I put a tracker in each of the suits I made for you. Need any help?"

"Billy!" She cried out happily before turning serious. "Wait…tracker what?"

* * *

 _I know a lot of writing and filmmaking involves 'show, don't tell.' Unfortunately, I could show no further past this point in the story. As much as I tried to hint at Murana's past, her complex motives and why she does the things she does, I now had to come clean and get the whole truth from the wolf's mouth, as it were. There was simply no way getting around this exposition dump. The way the story played out from multiple viewpoints and perspectives, I could no longer show any further. I knew that before going into the final climatic battle with Karnage, I needed to level with the reader on all aspects of her past that were only hinted at in the previous five days. All puzzle pieces should now click into place and the entire scope of who Murana is should come into focus for readers. This entire scene was tricky to write, but definitely easy to get through since I belted it out in a single sitting. After much revising, I feel I cut it down to the core exposition that was needed._

 _The second scene was somewhat more difficult to write since it wasn't actually a part of this chapter to begin with and was to be the beginning of the next. However, that sequence was running very long and I needed to cut it somewhere and place the remainder here to pad out this otherwise short chapter. I felt it worked best since it gave us a nice pause to gather our thoughts, figure out the major players going forward into the finale and prep Murana for success. It was not intended for Billy to come in as he did, but by some spontaneous inspiration, he provided the missing key that would get Murana onto the Iron Vulture. Saddle up boys and girls, it's going to be a bumpy ride!_


	19. Saturday - Darkest Before the Dawn - Evg

_Zootopia – Where Anyone Can be Anything_  
 _Saturday – 11:01 PM – Overcast Skies / Pouring Rain w/Occasional Gusts_

"I'm still mad at you." Murana looked rather pitiful, even in the imposing Dark Flame Wolf garb she had on. The rain was pelting their fur ferociously and it was getting harder and harder to see through the watery haze at the rising Iron Vulture.

"At the tracking devices I put in your suits? Relax, it's mainly for my benefit in the unlikely event you die in the field and I need to find and reclaim my work. No one has access to its frequency except for me. I just don't want my stuff in the hands of the wrong people." Billy finished securing the final communication piece in her ear, fastening it on with a clip. "Can you hear me now?"

"Loud and clear." She grumbled, his voice resounding deep into her skull. "That doesn't make me feel any better. It's almost like you expect me to fail every time I go out."

Billy shrugged as he walked over to check and adjust the ear pieces for Ralph, Ron and Max. "It's just the line of business we're in, Murana. I expect you to come back, but I also plan for the off chance you don't. Besides, you are far more adept than I am at chasing down and taking out these pirates. I've seen what they are capable of and may I remind you that I am no fighter. I'm a tinkerer, not a warrior."

"Fine, so how are you going to get home if you're leaving your motorcycle with me?" She looked over at the upgraded piece of hardware kicked up on its stand on the side of the road.

"We're actually going to follow close behind you as best we can." Billy gestured to Ralph.

"We are?" Ralph was quite unaware of this plan.

"Between the three of them, they can all fit on the motorcycle and catch up to that airship far faster than we can by going the roads. She just keeps us informed where it is heading and we do our best to meet them there to provide backup." At a look from Ralph, Billy reached up as far as he could to pat the wildebeest on the arm. "Whether you like it or not, you're in this together with us, buddy. Let's focus on getting those kits back home safely. We can deal with the legalities of all this later."

"It's started to move!" Max put a paw up to his ear so they could hear him.

Billy rolled his eyes. "You don't have to press any buttons, Max. It's not like in the movies. Just talk normally and the rest of us can hear you. These things have a max range of five miles, so we should be good on comms for this."

"He's right." Murana hooked a leg over the cycle and patted the seat behind her. "We need to get a move on if we're going to catch up to it."

"You sure you want me behind you again?" Ron vaulted himself up onto the space right behind her, placing an arm on either side to grip tight.

"As long as you promise not to stab me again." Murana lifted an elbow to allow Max to slither up in front of her and sit between her legs. She enclosed her arms on either side of his head. It was a tight fit for all three of them, but the diminutive sizes of two of the passengers made it manageable.

Billy stepped up beside her as she revved up the engine, getting ready to peel off down the road. "Murana, I've been working on this bike for you for a long time. It's not fully tested and some features may not be functional, but I guarantee most of it will work."

"That's comforting." She huffed, twisting the handle to rev it louder.

Billy pointed directly at the barrier wall to the northwest leading towards Downtown Central. "It seems it is heading that way. I advise you to press this button and go directly across the sand. When you get close to the wall, pop a wheelie and press that button. You'll understand if you aim it right." Not waiting for questions, he handed a pair of wrist cuffs to Max. "Secure these on now, little guy. Murana has what she needs to get from place to place built into her suit, but if you want to keep up, you'll need these." He finally turned to Ron, "I didn't account for a third. I got nothing for you."

"Brilliant." Ron thumped his tail on the back of the cycle. "Not like I'll need help."

"That's the spirit." Billy smirked. "We'll follow behind as close as we can." He waved them off as he walked back to get into the car with Ralph, who was already behind the driver's wheel listening to them and waiting.

Murana could hear Ralph grilling Billy as soon as he got into the cruiser. "Who are you again?"

"An old acquaintance." Billy seemed content not to say any more.

"Cut the chatter!" Murana commanded as she zoomed off the side of the road, catching some sick air as the embankment dropped down steeply.

Landing hard on the sand with a jolt, she pushed the button Billy instructed her to. Within seconds, small studs popped out on the tires and gripped the free-flowing sand like asphalt. The three of them were quickly zipping along the dunes, roaring over the hills and accelerating down the slopes. Several times, she could feel the tight claws gripping her sides whenever they hit a rough patch. Her eyes were ever on the Iron Vulture, which was strangely going slower than she remembered. Either something was wrong with it or their fixes weren't as perfect as Karnage hoped.

"The wall is coming up fast!" Ron reminded, tapping a claw on the ribcage opposite the one he stabbed. At least he was aware and nice about it.

Recalling what Billy said, she rumbled the engine and popped a wheelie, their front going high into the air. The headlight pointing directly at the top of the wall, she pressed the other button mentioned and a huge grappling hook shot out of the front panel just above the headlight. It spiraled up to the peak, latching onto some bar or pipes securely, causing a taut pull on the motorcycle. Before they knew it, they were vertical, scaling the gigantic border wall on two wheels.

"This is amazing!" Max was whooping. He never had this much fun. Even if the rain was flooding his mouth at the moment, he couldn't deny the awesomeness of this moment.

"Not so much for me!" Ron yelped, literally hanging onto Murana for dear life, his own thighs squeezing hard on the seat to keep him in place.

"Impressive, Billy." Murana commented, increasing their speed.

"Why, thank you. I'm glad I went back to get this for you." He seemed pleased with himself.

"Where is it heading?" Ralph was anxious to get this over with. Murana couldn't blame him. His life seemed to be completely upended the moment he set foot in Zootopia.

Murana pushed the same button again, which jettisoned the cable as they reached the top. She squealed and rounded the motorcycle into a spin to get herself to stop as she put a hind paw to the deck to reorient herself. Scanning the skyline, she saw the dark shape of the Vulture light up when a flash of lightning streaked over the rooftops, hitting the dish atop it.

"As if a normal rainstorm isn't bad enough." Ron didn't seem to like the situation.

Max looked over the other side of the wall down into Savannah Central. The entire walkway above the dividing wall was big enough to potentially house two giraffe-sized cars side by side, plenty of room to maneuver for their small bike. Murana eyed their destination and picked a route quickly, kicking up her paw and barreling down the center.

"So how are we going to get down?" Max asked the sensible question.

"We're not." Murana fired back, determination in her voice.

"Why do I not like the sound of that?" Ron nestled his head into the small of her back.

"I thought you were some big-shot assassin? This should be nothing to you." She ribbed, clearly enjoying the otter's discomfort.

"I never did these sort of death-defying stunts to get to my practice targets. I was always more of a 'get up close and personal and strike when they least expect it' sort of guy. This is not what I trained for." Ron's voice was a bit higher-pitched than normal.

"You could have always stayed on the ground with Billy." She chuckled, her eyes focused forward.

"And miss another potential shot at reclaiming my job position at the bank? Never!" He quivered with indignation. "I'd prefer something like that than this ever again, my father be damned!"

"You're still fired. I've yet to think about rescinding that decision." Murana responded thoughtfully.

"Chatter." Billy reminded from the car below.

"Shut up." Murana could almost hear the giggle from the fox on the other end.

The Vulture was beginning to loom ahead of them. Its imposing bulk was just crossing over the wall, still too high up for them to actually make the leap. They needed to get higher than its current elevation before they would be safe to make the transition to the ship. A buzzing in the air made their fur stand up on end as crackling was distinctly heard from above. The rail cannons at the front of the Vulture were being aimed towards them.

"Hold on tight!" Murana swerved hard, nearly bringing them to the edge as a bolt of lightning shattered the side of the wall, sending debris and chunks of deadly concrete to the city below.

"There is a building in front of us!" Max pointed out.

Weaving left to avoid yet another surge of electricity, Murana noticed the wall making a hard right to the east, ending their forward momentum right at the foot of a tall skyscraper in the heart of downtown. Glancing off to her left, there was a smaller building with sloped roofing that arced upwards, a far better choice than the straight vertical option ahead of them. She didn't want to chance that Billy packed a second hook cable in the bike.

"Ron, don't fall off." She tightened the grip of her hips on both the motorcycle and around Max as she jerked the bike hard to the left.

They bumped over the lip of the wall and soared through the air, slamming down on the reinforced glass, cracking it slightly. Gunning the engine, she peeled off towards the next roof, trying to reach the apex of the current to get the most hang time from each jump, crossing beneath the underbelly of the Vulture in the process. Max was hollering with joy as Ron was clawing at her in terror.

"Where is your location?" Ralph's voice seemed curt.

"We're traveling across the rooftops in a northwesterly direction. It appears to be crossing downtown and heading to the Rainforest District. It's moving abnormally slow." Murana informed.

"That's good for us then." Billy breathed a sigh of relief.

"You mammals are nuts!" Ralph thought the entire situation was insane.

"We're coming up on a building that might be tall enough for us to cross over." Murana vibrated her whole body to shake off the water coating it, her instinct taking over the futility of the action.

Without waiting for permission, she blasted off the side of the closest roof ledge to the Vulture. They could barely make out the interior through the portholes on the side of the primary metal structure beneath the dirigible ballast balloons. She was aiming for the side balcony that was jutting out on the side of the central hangar to the right of the Vulture's beak.

"Ah, shit!" She nearly lost control as a pirate burst out of the oval airlock door and began firing on them with a machine gun.

Bullets shattering the glass windows and puncturing air conditioning vents rushing past them, she took the risk and gunned the engines hard. Ramping off a construction girder, the spinning front wheel connected with the pirate's face, crushing his entire body onto the deck. Losing control of the motorcycle, they tipped and tumbled over in a somersault, scattering out across the balcony.

"Report. What's going on?" Ralph was insistent.

"Fucking peachy." Murana groaned, the throbbing in her ribs peeking through the painkillers. "We're on the Iron Vulture. It still seems to be heading for Rainforest."

"Got it. Try to take it down from inside, see if you can steer it away from the city if you can." Billy clicked off, his and Ralph's transmitters going silent. It seemed whatever he wanted to say to Ralph next, he wanted them not to hear.

"That was a bit rude." Ron waddled up next to Murana, addressing the radio cutoff. He helped her shove the dead pirate body off the side, watching it tumble to the streets below.

Murana did another shake to try and remove the water from her fur and suit, "I'm sure he has his reasons. I've been working with Billy long enough to trust him."

She backed up against the side of the Vulture, grateful to now have the ballast balloons sheltering them from the worst of the storm. She peeked in through the half open door to see they were high above the bay, opening out onto a catwalk. There was a huge bustle of activity down below. The ratio of children to pirates was imbalanced, but the adults were keeping the majority in line with trained weapons as the little ones scurried about doing tasks in preparation for leaving the city.

Her eyes followed the catwalk to the far end where several grated stairs led to and from various floors of the arching hangar. Without looking at either of them, Murana instructed, "Max, I want you with me. We're going to scout out the captain's quarters and then move down to the holding cells until we find Steven. He's got to be here somewhere."

"And what will I do?" Ron was peering in from the other side of the door.

"If I remember right," She pointed towards the far end of the spacious interior opposite them, past the mass body of moving mammals, "the engine room should be beyond that portal door."

"It'll be the second door on the left with stairs leading down." Max clarified.

Murana stared at Max as she continued her orders, "All I need is for you to put a wrench into the gears, as it were, so that the ship stops functioning in about fifteen minutes. That should put us past the majority of Zootopia and have it crash just outside the city limits, minimizing casualties."

"All by myself?" Ron wiped his glasses on an miraculously still dry handkerchief from his pants pocket. "I'm honored you think so highly of my skills to let me go on my own."

"Don't give yourself too much credit. I just don't want to let Max out of my sight right now and you're more expendable." She turned to look at him with a grin.

"Noted. I know where I stand." He returned the smile before whipping out two small daggers.

"Where did you get…?" Murana shook her head. "You know what? It doesn't matter. Just get to that engine room and set us down within fifteen minutes. They haven't noticed we're aboard yet, so the element of surprise is with us. Go!"

Leaving the motorcycle on its side behind them, they darted through the opening and scampered quietly down the metal catwalk. Ron branched off and twirled his way down the circling staircase. Quickly flitting from crate to crate, his assassin skills were on full display. Confident he'd get the job done, Murana signaled Max to follow as they made their way to Karnage's bed chambers.

"They haven't spotted us yet." Max's eyes were roving around, keeping watch as they slinked up to the closed door, its porthole the only visible peek into the room.

"Probably because they're too busy getting out of dodge to focus on having stowaways." She crouched low as the entire structure shook. Their ears popped as another lightning bolt was fired from the Vulture. "Looks like they're finding new targets now." She murmured, getting on her tiptoes to check the room.

After verifying it was safe, she slowly opened the door and checked the corners of the room. It was as she remembered it. The only difference was the small corpse at the foot of Karnage's four-poster bed. Max broke off from her as he knelt down next to the wolf and put a paw on his cold cheek. He was still for a long while.

"Was that a friend of yours?" Murana leaned over to look at him. She recognized the signs of a missing soul, the eyes rolled up into the head.

Max denied it, "No, just someone who was punished for us leaving."

Murana's face drew into a scowl as she pursed her lips, "Well, we're here now to prevent this from happening to anyone else."

She got on both knees and picked the locks, unshackling the cub from the floor. Lifting him up in her arms, she unfurled the blankets and reverently set the tiny wolf onto the bed, his frame sinking in slightly. She tucked him in, adjusted the pillows and shut his eyelids. She made it look like he was resting peacefully, about to awaken at any moment.

"This is the best grave I can offer him right now." She pressed a hand on the wolf's forehead and said a small prayer. Finishing, she surveyed the room. "Steven isn't here. Let's check the rest of the hold."

Closing the door behind her so as to not arouse suspicion if anyone happened to look up in their direction, she padded down the metal-grated catwalk. Taking a moment to observe the proceedings below, she grew incensed at the treatment of the kits. They were doing the finishing touches on strapping down the cargo, but were being pushed and prodded roughly by the pirate crew. There was even one unfortunate calf being beaten in the corner for some unknown transgression.

Feeling a tug on her sleeve, she followed the line of Max's finger as he pointed to the landing below them. "They kept me up here near Karnage, but the rest of those they locked away were down there in those rooms."

"It's amazing you remember so much about this layout. You weren't even here for two days." She whispered, dropping down from the ledge and alighting softly on the walkway below, extending her arms to catch Max as he hopped down as well.

"I can usually find my way around really quickly after one visit to someplace new." Max informed without giving it much credence.

"That's a fantastic skill." She complimented, taking a quick look into each room as they passed down the row.

Murana made a small sound of excitement when her eyes recognized the familiar black and white of her son, locked away behind the bulkhead door. She could feel the adrenaline tapering off as she gripped the wheel on the front and began to exert her muscles in twisting it counter-clockwise. Both her and Max's ears perked up as someone called them out from across the way.

"Hey! It's the little twerp and his mom!" The skirling screech belonged to none other than Mad Dog, already gathering a small contingent of crewmen to follow him up the staircase to their level.

"Murana, I think we need to hurry it up." Max reached back with a hind paw and tapped her on the leg, his eyes tracking the pirate's ascent.

"Stay close to me, Max." She grunted, undoing the last turns of the wheel, hearing a substantial clunk as the lock disengaged, allowing the door to give a little.

"Let me handle them." He looked confident.

She paused, inspecting him from top to bottom. "Max, Billy didn't give you any weapons to work with. It's dangerous."

"He gave me these!" Looking up at her mask, he held out his wrists to show her the two bands he was given earlier.

She smiled at his innocence, "Honey, those aren't weapons. They're grappling hooks for mobility. They could work in a pinch, but I wouldn't recommend them."

"I want to help. Please let me help." His eyes shifted subtly, but Murana could tell he was staring directly at her now.

Murana bit her lower lip for a few moments, hearing the racket the pirates were making. They were almost level with them. Firm resolution settling in, she opened up a clamp plating on her belt, pulled out several kunai blades and handed them to Max. "I know it isn't much, but combined with your hooks, you should be able to do some damage. Just…don't take unnecessary risks. If anything goes wrong, meet me back at the balcony with the motorcycle."

Hooking his fingers through the metal hoops at the ends of each blade, he gave a surprising, brief hug to her before running down the catwalk towards the pirates. Murana watched from a distance a few moments longer to see if he was going to be alright.

In a single bound, Max leapt from the grating, hit the railing and jumped off towards the spiral staircase. Pressing a button to fire out a hook to latch onto the flooring he had just left, he pounded hindpaw first into the pirate just behind Mad Dog, launching the canine ass over end down several stories to a satisfying crunch on the metal deck below. Using the momentum and the swinging velocity of his cable, he arced around the stairs and landed on the steps just above the lead pirate before retracting the cable back into his wristband. Its barbed hook slashed the cheek of another pirate on its return trip.

"Mom…? Is that you?" The tentative voice broke Murana's vigil over Max.

"Baby?" She cried out with relief. She tore into the room and saw her son getting up on all fours on his cot, his attention directed at her. Swooping him up in a hug, she gave him loving licks from ear to nose. "I'm here, baby! I'm not going to let you out of my sight again. Did they hurt you? I'm going to kill them!" She was furious.

"I'm fine…they didn't do anything to me." Steven pawed at the back of her neck. "They just tossed me in here and locked the door. I haven't eaten or drank anything since then."

"Bastards." Murana growled. At a yelp from outside, she propped Steven back onto his paws. "Come on, we have to help your brother. He's outside buying us some time."

"He's adopted now?" Steven said wide-eyed.

"Not yet, but he might as well be." She beamed.

Max had definitely done just that. The time bought was necessary, as it seemed the only pirate left standing was Mad Dog. The surly weasel of a canine was swiping at the raccoon with his spiked bracers, pounding the railings and flooring, snarling as he was narrowly missing Max by inches each time. It seemed Max was enjoying himself at annoying Mad Dog.

"Stay still, you little runt! Let me hit you!" Mad Dog was near frothing at trying to strike the deft raccoon.

Sensing her success behind him, Max looked back to Murana. "Look! I said I could help you!" He was extremely proud of himself.

Several anguished screams erupted from beneath them. Murana looked down and pointed. "But your actions didn't help them!"

All their eyes riveted to the horrific scene below. Several pirates whom Max had booted off and killed from the fall were back on their feet alive again. Each had zeroed in on the nearest child, their soul being drained to add more life to the pirate that stole it. Murana was wrathful as she saw each little body crumple to the floor lifeless. The rest of the kits were shrieking. Pandemonium had broken out as all of them scattered trying to escape the adults.

"Max! Look out!" It was Steven who had spotted that Mad Dog was aiming a small musket directly at Max's head.

"Time to die, you little shit!" Mad Dog looked triumphant, finally getting back at the annoying captain's pet.

Reacting fast, Max ducked low and did a sweeping roundhouse kick to the legs of Mad Dog. The pirate stumbled and pitched over the side, but not before reaching out and grabbing a pawful of Max's tail. A genuine look of fear washed over Max's face as he tried to grasp onto the slotted flooring and was pulled over the edge with Mad Dog. His arm strength was no match for the heavier weight and he let go, both falling to the deck half a dozen meters below.

"Max! No!" Murana howled. She could probably make the fall down herself, but she couldn't take the risk with Steven in tow nor take the stairs since that would bring them too close to the nearest group of pirates. Hauling him onto her like a backpack, she ran to the far end of the catwalk. "Hang onto me, Steven. Don't let go!"

Feeling her son's tiny paws grip her tight, she undid a hook from her belt and fastened it to the lower bar of the railing before springing over the side, wrapping her leg around the cable to stabilize herself. Pressing a button on her belt, she uncoiled the entire length as she rappelled the distance to the base floor. Paws touching solid ground, she tapped another button to unhook it from her belt, since she wasn't planning on coming back to undo the cable.

Her eyes taking into account each of the pirates on the floor near her, who were slowly becoming aware of her presence with them, she hurried to the last known position she saw Max fall. She skidded down to her knees behind a metal crate as she beheld the chilling scene. Max was shivering over the body of Mad Dog, the canine's eyes rolled up into his head. Max was crying, rocking back and forth with a shard of the totem clenched in his hand.

With a tear-stained face, he sniffled as he whimpered, "I didn't mean to do it…I didn't mean to do it."

However it happened, the struggle that occurred after their fall ended in Mad Dog's soul being torn from his body. Max was feeling the gravity of what he had done, inadvertently or not. This was the moment of his first true kill and it mortified him.

Murana wanted to do nothing more than to sweep him up in her arms and give him a big hug. She understood what he was going through. He needed someone who had been there to comfort him in his moment of existential grief. Unfortunately, it was not to be. Guns fired as bullets ricocheted off the steel flooring and walls around them.

"I'm sorry, Max." She scooped him up and, with both him and Steven in arm, she made a mad sprint towards the front beak-like bay door. Screeching to a halt, she roughly laid both boys down as she examined the levers on the wall. She went to a knee and gently tapped Max on the cheek to get his attention, "Hey, sweetie, can you tell me which one of these switches opens the door?" She was banking on the fact he had an excellent visual memory.

Stirring at her touch, he studied them and pointed to the one on the far left. "That one."

Murana yanked the lever down hard. A deep rumbling shook the entire Vulture as the maw began to slowly open, the sound of the rain outside getting louder. Her ears shot up as a howl was heard, followed swiftly by another and yet another. Every pirate seemed to rise in unison in a singular cry, regardless of species. Her tail was swishing erratically as she fought hard against the innate desire to join the howl.

"Ah-ha-ha, Murana. You are a naughty wolf." Don Karnage shouted through the din of voices. "The moment I discovered something was amiss, I knew you were behind it all. Who else but my former pet could do such vexing things?"

"You…were always…a bastard…" She gritted her teeth, her urge to howl rising.

She stepped in front of Max and Steven, putting a warding hand in front of them for protection. They were surrounded. It was either going through the horde of pirates or falling back and off the Vulture to plummet hundreds of feet to certain death. Her eyes pinpointed targets she could potentially take out quickly, but she knew it wouldn't be enough. They were overwhelmed and outgunned.

Karnage, looking youthful as ever, clucked his tongue as he became visible, his crew parting ways to give him entrance. He regarded Murana, now on her knees and fighting hard against her instinctual impulses. "Oh, that's right!" He mocked, tapping a finger to his cheek. "I had almost forgotten that wolves can't help themselves when it comes to howling! Can they? It's a pack thing, isn't it? Some sort of familial bonding? Well, the thing about foxes is, we're more like lone wolves than you are!"

He cackled before raising his chin high and howling himself. Murana couldn't hold it in anymore. She threw her own head back and let loose a long, mournful howl. She tried her best to push through the inner instinct, but it was overpowering. She let loose another one and kept going, her voice joining the chorus of the pirates.

Karnage pulled out the twin guns from his belt and pointed one at Max and Steven to prevent them from interfering. He placed the other on Murana's throat as she howled. "Good bye, pet. You were fun, but now our time is done."

His gun went off, the aim shifting right and narrowly missing her neck as the entire aircraft lurched to the left. Kits screamed as the choir of pirates instantly ceased. With the howling gone, Murana instantly took the opening and gripped Karnage's wrist. She snapped it with a flick, causing bone to crack and the Don to drop his gun.

Karnage yowled in misery, falling onto his rump and scooting backwards quickly toward the protection of his crew. "Get her! Kill her!" He shouted hysterically.

The pirates closed the gap, their captain disappearing among their numbers as they moved in to overpower and possibly rape, strangle or do any other manner of unseemly things. The entire aircraft trembled again as the Vulture yawed hard to the left, causing the already steep pitch to increase. Max started slipping away from her at an accelerated pace.

"Murana!" Max shouted, his paws reaching out for her. She went to make a grab, but he was already out of reach.

"Mom!" Steven yelled. She swung her paw up and grabbed him quickly, securing him close to her breast. She had no idea what Ron had done to the engine room, but it was more drastic than she had envisioned.

The ship started to level finally. She glanced back to look out the fully opened beak of the Vulture to see they were already over the Rainforest District, heading straight for The Docks on the other side. It wouldn't be long before they cleared the city entirely. An explosion rocked the aircraft, causing more terrified screams. Murana cursed as she felt the inexorable descent into the city. They weren't going to clear the outskirts.

With the immediate threat of their ship doing a nose dive abated, the pirates resumed their captain's order and went to bum rush the two of them. Max was knocked out at the far end of the bay, having smacked up head first against the steel siding. Flicking out a few metal rods, she tossed a few into the crowd, slicing through into their skulls via their eye sockets. As their bodies fell, more took their place. She wouldn't be able to take them down all by herself, and Steven was quivering beside her unable to help.

Murana looked down at her son and realized a solution. She picked him up and flicked him around under her arm. "I'm sorry, baby. Please forgive Momma." She appealed.

"Mom? What are you doing? What's happening?" Steven's face flushed a hard shade of crimson.

Murana had him perched under her arm, butt facing out into the group of pirates who had suddenly stopped, realizing the potential problem. Holding Steven's tail up with her other arm, she reached around underneath between his legs to shred his pants with her claws, exposing him embarrassingly.

"Sorry…" She whispered one last time.

With a lone but firm finger from the paw holding his tail, she pressed hard on a gland just above his anus, causing him to uncontrollably spray his putrid musk out across the distance spanning them and the pirates. Using the button controlling the potent gel mix in her belt, she pressed the button on her palm hard to have it flow through the tubing. The moment it made contact with Steven's spray from her wrist, it turned immediately into flames.

"Holy musk!" Steven cursed, surprising himself. His rump was incredibly hot and it felt uncomfortably scalding, yet Murana was doing her best to keep the majority of the flames away from his rear and tail.

Knowing she couldn't keep this up for long, she waged forward with purpose, swinging Steven back and forth, the immolating flames setting ablaze any pirate who was too slow or smart to run away. Each victim went up in a pyre of stinky conflagrations, their bodies writhing and wailing.

Satisfied that all who opposed them had turned tail, she calmly set Steven down beside her, small wisps of smoke still wafting up from his backside. He sheepishly looked up at her, covering himself with both paws and tail.

"I owe you some new pants, son." She promised, not meeting his eye.

"Ok, let's not speak of this again." He scratched the back of his head, not really sure how to address his mother at the current moment.

"Max!" She suddenly remembered about him. She looked over to where she last saw him. He had gone missing. "Max?!" She shouted again into the hangar. The only thing that returned was the sobbing of the cubs, kits and calves huddled in the far corner of the area. The rest of the pirates were either on fire, dead or scattered to regroup.

Ron finally appeared from the door leading to the engine room, his glasses flashing from the light as he surveyed the destruction around him. He spied the two of them and hurried over. "Things didn't go as planned. We're probably going to have to make an early landing."

She looked behind her as The Docks got more vivid in view. They were going to clear the canopy of the Rainforest District, but they were going to smash into something beyond it. "Ron, we need to escape this ship fast!" She pointed to the water on either side of the piers ahead of the Vulture. "I need you to help me gather the children up and hop off with them into the water. You're a better swimmer than any of us. Can you get them all to shore safely, please?"

Her pleading look could not be denied. He nodded with confidence, "I will do as you ask. Where shall I meet you?"

"Wherever this thing crashes, I'll probably be there, if we're still alive." The moaning of several charred corpses directed their attention to the immediate threat. "They're still not dead. We need to hurry!"

"What about Max?" Ron looked around for the raccoon.

Murana stifled back a cry, "I don't know."

"I'm sorry, Murana, but we got no time!" Ron had to state the harsh reality.

Nothing more needed to be said. Ron skittered over to the cubs and began relaying instructions for them to follow him. With that out of the way, she grabbed Steven by the paw and raced to the spiraling staircase leading back up to the balcony with which they entered the Vulture. They had reached the top catwalk before she glanced down to see how the evacuation was going.

Half the children were already leaping off into the water as best they could, some being prompted by their peers if they were too scared to jump on their own. Ron was doing his part protecting, wielding dual daggers, slicing and dicing up pirates as they came near. None could seem to get a finger on the otter as he circling around their bodies, stabbing and lopping off limbs. It turned into quite the bloodbath.

They reached the motorcycle at last, kicking the bulkhead door shut behind them. She propped it back up onto its wheels, placing Steven in front of her as she ignited the engines. The slant of the Vulture was making it hard for Murana to keep the bike upright as she prepared to make the leap to the nearest pier as it rushed past. She was already feeling exhausted.

"Mom? We're going to hit that Ferris wheel!" Steven covered his eyes, not wanting to look at the impending doom ahead of them.

"Not if we check out first!" She revved the motorcycle, twisting the handle a few times, getting it prepped.

Gauging the distance, she popped a wheelie and plowed forward, her back wheel going up and over the railing as she sailed through the air towards the nearest landing. Ignoring the blood-curdling shrieks of Steven, she aimed her front wheels to land on the center board closest to the amusement park entrance. They rammed down hard, tipping the bike over and flinging them both off the seat. Murana cried out as she landed on her side, rolling over and over with Steven clutched tight in her arms.

Steven wiggled out of her firm grasp, looking up as the Vulture flew past them and crashed into the lit up Ferris wheel. An uproar of alarmed howls diffused through the park as the lights on the attractions flickered and went out. Darkness descended on the boardwalk as multiple electrical lines got tangled up in the bulk of the Vulture, dragging the poles attached across the pier, slashing wide swaths of holes. The shifted landscape caused many of the rides and vendor's booths to slide and splash into the water, causing the guests to run away in terror.

The Vulture took the upper half of the Ferris wheel with it into its maw before hurtling into the lake beyond the docks. Geysers of water flew into the air as a cacophonous roar resounded throughout the northern portion of Zootopia. Several fiery explosions billowed out of the propellers as the gas from within the ballast balloons ignited, sending shockwaves across all the piers, shattering windows and pushing more of the damaged amusement park into the water along with their screaming occupants.

Transfixed by the destruction in front of him, Steven barely registered that Murana hadn't moved. Turning around to see her inert form, he began pawing at her face and arms, gently pushing her to get her to wake up. "Mom? Mom? Please get up! We need to go find Max. Mom?" Steven started to tear up the longer she remained motionless.

The crackling of static in her ear as Billy and Ralph switched back into the channel was what woke her up. "Murana? Murana, are you there? We just heard it crashed over by The Docks. We are sending the ZPD over to assist. We are enroute, tell us your status and location. Murana? Murana, are you there?" He continued to repeat.

"What the hell you doing that for?" She groaned, trying to get up onto her paws and knees. The pain was starting to ebb back; the soreness hadn't quite reached throbbing, but she wasn't feeling good. The adrenaline was gone and all she felt now was tired. "I thought the goal was not to involve every single person in Zootopia, especially the ZPD. I'd like to not get taken back to jail, please." She snarked.

"Hate to break it to you, toots," Billy said seriously, despite the jovial nature of the jab. "But you crossed that line when you involved Officer Grayz here. Besides, you know my meager medical supplies are gone now and I cannot take care of you. You need medical attention when this is all over and unfortunately, you'll have to be taken to the hospital whether it's with the ZPD or not. That's why I switched off. I knew you wouldn't approve of this."

"Your bedside manner sucks, Billy." She spit a glob of blood onto the wood, getting up the rest of the way.

"You'll probably be hearing the sirens soon, we're almost there." Billy remained on the line, even though he went silent.

"Mom? Are you okay? How do you feel?" Steven was distraught. She looked a mess. Her outfit was ripped and torn in various places, exposing fur and cuts. The laceration on her ribs had reopened, and there was a dark patch of red spreading freely along her side.

"I'll be fine, Steven." Murana held a paw to her side, clutching the wound.

Grimacing, the Ulfuram wearing off, she began staggering down the pier to loop back around to the far end of the docks to where the crash site was closest so they could potentially board and hopefully find Max. Steven trailed close behind, not wanting to leave her side for an instant. If there was a chance he could help her out, he was willing to be there for her.

Sure enough, they could hear the sirens and see the revolving red and blue splaying across the trees as the cop cruisers began bursting out of the tree line of the Rainforest District. Murana was almost to the downed Vulture, having come to a rest near the abandoned warehouses opposite the once pristine fairgrounds perched on the 22nd Pier. She had no idea where Ron and the children were, but she knew Max probably went down with the ship and that she needed to find him.

Dismissing the cops pulling up behind her, Murana kept trudging on, her mind set on a singular goal. She turned her head aside to give an askance look to Steven, "You might want to stay behind with them, little stinker." She waved a paw off in the direction of the ZPD.

Steven looked across the row of condemned buildings and shivered as he recalled the burned down one at the very end. That was the musk mill he had been imprisoned in for two years of his young life. His voice quivering, "I'll be alright, Mom. We're almost there."

Murana bowed her head in agreement. She could hear the slamming of doors behind her as the vehicles came to a stop, blocking off the path back down the dock. She went to thank Steven, but a loud bellow surprised them both. Before she could think, she felt a vice-like grip on her throat, lifting her into the air as her legs kicked out futilely, lungs gasping for air.

A soaking, large grey bulldog complete with a garish black top hat was chortling at her expense, looking mighty pleased with himself at having surprised her. "I was never quite likin' the name Dumptruck, but I do understand why they calls me that! Cuz I hits like a dump truck!" He guffawed heartily, slamming her into the pier and knocking the wind out of her.

"Leave her alone!" Steven was angry, trying to beat on him with little effect.

"Har, har! The little shrimp comes out to play, eh?" Dumptruck was loving this. "Don't worry, little guy. I can play with you all night long when I'm done here with dis wolf!" He whacked him away, causing Steven to tumble back and trip on his tail, making him fall to the ground in a heap.

"And I'm quite done with you!" Ralph brayed, galloping on all fours for the second time in his life deliberately.

Dumptruck didn't have time to react as he stupidly raised his face to see the oncoming wildebeest ram headlong into him at full speed. Murana sucked in air as the meaty paw was removed from her neck. Ralph continued to trade blows with the bulldog, seemingly having the upper hoof.

Vaguely aware of her surroundings, Murana began to crawl away. She thought she heard someone call out her name, but she ignored it. Her eyes locked onto the mirage of a fox before her, who was hanging back several yards away watching the struggle unfold. Slumped over his shoulder was the recognizable form of a raccoon.

"Max?" Murana croaked, continuing to creep forward on her stomach. "Max!" She yelled out, the vision becoming clearer.

This spooked Karnage, who seemed to have aged fifty years again. He took off running and dipped into the nearest warehouse alongside the old Musk Mill. Drawing upon the last of her strength, Murana willed herself to get onto her hind paws. She stumbled off to the side, barely missing the cluster that was Ralph and Dumptruck as they blew past her, each trying to gain the advantage.

The pain in her side was overpowering now. She was only able to make it a few paces down the walkway before having to rest. She looked back to see Dumptruck strangling the life out of Ralph. Other cops were already running down the pier, screaming for the bulldog to stop or they would shoot, but they wouldn't make it in time. The fight in Ralph was starting to wane as his life was being choked out. Even a wildebeest was no match for the raw power that was Dumptruck.

Murana was shocked as a dark mass splashed out of the water, toothed maw open wide. It grappled Dumptruck along the midriff, clamping down tight as it wriggled back and forth with its flippers off the edge into the water on the other side. It had only happened in a span of a few seconds, but the scuffle had ended as suddenly as it began. All that was left was the hacking coughs of Ralph as he attempted to recover.

"S-Sebastian?" Ralph heaved, trying to crawl over and look into the murky depths.

Murana looked down to see the weak form of Steven trying to get up when realization of what she still had left to do slammed into her mind. "Max…" She whispered.

Without a care for anything else, she followed the footsteps of Karnage, the world around her a blur. She banged the door open, letting it clang against the side. The element of surprise long gone, she wandered through the empty rooms, each covered in soot and dust. She did her best to remain stealthy, but her injuries were now affecting both her actions and judgment.

At last she rounded the bend, passing through a doorway that opened up into a grand warehouse room piled high with girder pallets and boxes. Ahead of her was Karnage. He was holding Max out at arm's length by the scruff of his neck, a gun aimed at his head. Max's eyes looked off, like he was drugged, as if Karnage had attempted a soul-sucking but was interrupted.

"At last we come to it, eh?" Karnage crowed. "The final curtain. Never in all my years did I ever expect to be taken down here, by you. However, if I'm going to go out with a bang, then I'll be taking a few souvenirs with me!" He cocked the gun audibly, growling as the action further injured his broken wrist.

Murana reached out both paws to stall him, taking a few steps forward. "No! You don't have to do this, Karnage! Take me back with you! I'll do anything you ask! Just let Max go! Take me!" She took a paw and tapped it to her chest.

Karnage raised an eyebrow, "As enticing as that sounds, you've lied to me far too many times." He gestured with his gun to his bitten ear. "And I promised myself never to fall prey to any feminine wiles ever again. You can tempt me all you want, but my goal is now and has always been to survive and live the life of luxury."

"I can help you with that!" She tried to reason with Karnage, continuing to take a few steps more, hoping to get within range so she could subdue him.

He resituated the gun back on Max's head. "Stop right there, my darling." He said, baring his teeth. "Only one of us is walking out of here alive and I think we both know who that is. You either let me suck the soul of your precious Max here, or I shoot him. Either way, you will watch him die. Then you'll know the pain I felt when I lost everything tonight."

"You sick piece of shit!" Murana snarled. "You can't even compare the two! Give him to me!" She made a dash for him, trying to pull out a few throwing stars to lob at his head.

"Shooting it is then." Karnage said emotionlessly as he pulled the trigger.

Murana's mouth opened in a silent cry of despair. She halted her forward momentum as she watched the red spatter blow out the other side of Max's head, his body falling limp to the cold, concrete flooring. His glazed eyes stared at Murana, reminding her of her failure. She went to a knee, weeping at the loss of Max.

Karnage coolly sauntered up to her, leveling his pistol at her face with his good paw. "We had some fun times, you and I, but like all good things…they must come to an end."

"Police! Stop right there!" Judy Hopps bounded into the room, followed close behind by Nick Wilde. Her gun was already out and loaded. Hitting the ground hard on her wounded leg, she stumbled and began rolling.

"Mother of pearl, Judy! I said to take it easy, but would you listen?" Nick reprimanded.

Without missing a beat, Karnage brought his arm up and began firing. Continuing the roll behind a crate, Judy retorted, "Not until this is over!"

Nick rolled to the side as Judy came out from behind the container and in unison they blew out Karnage's kneecaps. He dropped to the floor yelping, his weapon clattering away. Using the opportunity, Murana rose up with a sharpened star and stabbed him in the neck. With him gurgling on fresh blood, she calmly picked up his gun and pressed the cold metal in-between his eyes.

"Mrs. Wolford, you don't want to do that!" Judy called out to Murana, her own weapon still trained on Karnage.

"The Dark Flame Wolf is Mrs. Wolford?" Nick turned his head in surprise to Judy.

"Yes, Nick. Try to keep up!" She hissed out the side of her mouth.

"I believe I do want to do this." Murana was at peace now as she cocked the pistol for the final time. Karnage looked at her with abject fear, knowing she had every intention of following through.

"Mrs. Wolford, stop or I will shoot!" Judy shifted her focus to Murana.

"He raped me. He took my innocence. He destroyed what childhood I had left. He made it impossible for me to bear children, and now he has murdered Max. I will kill him." She put her finger through the trigger ring, preparing to squeeze.

"Mom! Don't do this! Let go of me!" Steven squirmed his way out of several cops' paws, doing his best to evade capture in trying to reach Murana. "Don't kill anymore! I don't want them to put you away forever! I can't bear to lose you again! Please!" He couldn't hold back the tears.

Murana paused, her finger shaking. "He took everything away from me…he took your future brother away, Steven." She locked eyes with him. "Don't you want revenge for that?"

"Yes…but not like this! Please, you're better than him…you're my Mom!" Steven pleaded, his eyes widening like saucers. "I love you…"

"Yeursh…" Karnage gargled on red spit. "Lishen to yur shon!"

"Shut up!" She bitch-slapped him with the butt of the gun. "You are going to die!"

"Mom! No! Please!" Steven wailed.

She was heaving now, both from wrath and from the pain of her reopened injuries. She wouldn't be able to stand on her own two hind paws for much longer. Everyone stood still, waiting to see what she would do. She turned from Steven, to Karnage, to Max and back to Karnage. She let loose a rage-filled howl directly into his face, digging the barrel of the pistol into his forehead, causing the Don to wince. She wanted to kill him. He deserved to die.

"Mom…" Steven said softly, shaking his head as he stared at her.

The gun she held fired.

* * *

 _This entire action sequence was freaking amazing to plan out. I had way more ideas to jampack in here, but if I had done that, this chapter would have been twice as long. I needed to keep the plot and action moving forward and not dwell on any one setpiece for too long, lest readers get bored. So I chose about one-two good ideas and fleshed them out for each section and continued to progress Murana through her preset goals of getting Steven back and then the final confrontation with Don Karnage. My favorite idea that originated from a talk nearly two years ago with Berserker88 was the skunk flamethrower. I even researched skunk musk to see if it was even flammable - it is. I'm very happy with how the entire chapter turned out._

 _For the longest time, since the beginning writing this story, I knew it would end this way. Whether it was with Max or Steven was never certain, but I knew a face-to-face confrontation with Don Karnage and the choice of having to kill him or not was always going to be the climax of the story. All roads led to this point and it had to feel earned. Everything we've learned about Murana, and everything we know about her relationships and what Don Karnage has done to her in life, all of this had to be justified and given proper weight throughout the story. This pivotal moment needed to feel impactful and hold real gravity. It took me several rewrites to finally get it right, even to the point of forgetting that Judy had an injured leg! But she was just as critical at being here to witness this for later events to happen, so I had to make some last minute adjustments both in this chapter and the next to explain her appearance here. After all is said and written, hopefully this scene hits home for the readers who had traveled this tumultuous journey with Murana._


	20. Sunday - A Life Rekindled - Final Day

_The Docks – Old Musk Mill Warehouse – Down Pier 23 across from Prairie Boardwalk_  
 _Sunday – 12:01 AM – Overcast Skies / Pouring Rain_

The only thing that saved Murana's life as both Nick and Judy's guns clicked, their aim on her head, was the gargling whine of Don Karnage. The gunshot reverberated throughout the spacious warehouse, causing the pirate captain to wince and shy away from his certain death. The barrel was still smoking millimeters from his eyes. It was aimed just off-kilter to have narrowly missing his face entirely. Murana had spared his life.

She was still furious and heaving, her fangs bared and her eyes malevolent. She wanted nothing less than his utter annihilation. However, she knew she would lose everything she held dear if she killed him here. Continuing with her course of action lest she change her mind, she unceremoniously emptied the pistol of every shell, letting them drop onto Karnage's head painfully before tossing the gun away from her.

"Mom!" Steven sniffled, breaking free from beyond Judy and Nick and rushing straight into her with open arms. She caught him with some surprise, immediately holding onto him tightly and giving him loving licks and kisses.

"Ugh…did we crash it?" Shock surged through everyone as all eyes turned to see Max slowly wobbling back up onto all fours. The only remnant of his fatal head wound was the red blood on the side of his face. The entire hole was completely sealed over and gone.

"Max?" Murana couldn't understand what had happened. "Max!" She screamed, literally picking up Steven as she lumbered over to the raccoon, herself clearly in a lot of pain. Falling to both knees, she gripped them both tightly to her bosom. "I saw you die! How are you still breathing?" She inspected his head thoroughly.

"I died?" Max looked confused, following her gaze as he felt the side of his ears. "I think…it was because of the totem that I survived. I took Mad Dog's life."

"I don't understand…" Murana was confused as she stared at the small fragment Max pulled out of his pocket, turning it over in the dim light. Her mind was slowly turning to mush as her body started to shut down.

"I figured out how they work." Max explained, not really taking into account Karnage nearby or the cops. He was telling this only to her. "I realized the moment Mad Dog and Karnage stood back up at the bank. The moment they steal someone's years as their own, they also get their life too." He could tell Murana still wasn't getting it. "They get an extra life. The moment you kill them, they lose the life they stole and are left with just their own until they steal another's. That's why they were so scared after that bunny shot them, they had no life insurance."

Steven had to chuckle at this pun. "I like him, Mom." He nuzzled up against both of them. "I think he's going to be a awesome little brother."

"And I think you're going to be an awesome tenant in our jail." Nick quickly intercepted Karnage as he started to slink away, grabbing him by the scruff of the neck. "It is foxes like you who give the rest of us a bad name." Nick was not amused.

Smiling at the family reunion, Judy turned her attention to Karnage, flinging out a pair of handcuffs off her belt as she limped over to him. "You are under arrest for murder, kidnapping, theft, destruction of property and I'm sure I could nail you on dozens of other counts. For your sake, you should keep your gurgling to a minimum. Nothing you say will probably save you now."

Realizing that he had finally been beat, Karnage wilted and allowed his wrists to be bound. Nick pulled out a small first aid kit and began treating the stab wound on Karnage's neck. "Wouldn't do no good to have you dead before you got to your hearing, now would it?" This brought a groan from the surly pirate. As if reminding himself, he turned his concerned gaze to Judy, "And that's the last time I trust you on an injury, young lady. I'm taking you to the ER after this." This psuedo-joking condescending tone brought a rolling of eyes from the bunny.

Murana began to feel woozy. The adrenaline was gone and the exertion had taken its toll on her body to the point the painkillers she took were no longer effective. She rotated her upper body to face Karnage, pointing her finger at his belt. "His pouch. Get his totem from it…" She managed to utter before collapsing, exhaustion overwhelming her.

"Mom!" Steven cried out, immediately holding her and trying to shake her awake.

Judy was fast to catch on to what Murana was referring to, immediately seizing the contents of the pouch indicated. "This is very unusual." She studied the jeweled shard in her paw. She looked over to Max, "And you say he was able to steal lives with this?"

"More like it stole souls." Max clarified.

Nick, having finished up his first aid, glanced up at the strange artifact. "Is that even possible? That's just…unnatural." He shivered involuntarily, not liking that prospect. He stood up to stand beside Judy to assist in staying standing herself.

With determination on her face, Judy gripped the talisman in her paw. "Then it needs to be destroyed." She threw it down on the ground and whipped out her gun, firing a clean shot at its gemstone, fracturing it into a thousand pieces.

The howl from Karnage was unearthly. His eyes bulged as the fragment shattered. His whole body convulsed as his fur turned grey. The muscles in his limbs atrophied and shrunk, showing nothing but skin and bones. His screeching was toe-curling as he writhed on the ground, the many years of his existence disappearing in an instant. Everyone stood stunned as his body turned to ash, and nothing was left of the famed pirate but a pile of dust.

Nick broke the silence first. "Great! Now you killed my patient!" This drew a glare from his partner.

Judy chuckled nervously as she refocused back on the pile that was once Karnage, her heart beating insanely fast. "I didn't mean for that to happen…" She looked at all in attendance, "That wasn't all me, was it?"

Max shrugged. "You destroyed the totem, not the fox."

"Can someone please help my Mom?" Steven was angry now. His mom could be hurt, have internal bleeding, or be flat out dying right now and she wasn't receiving any help.

Nick studied Murana's form for a few moments, "She is smaller than most wolves. Even if my partner was in a condition to help lift her, it would be rough getting her to the squad car by ourselves."

"No need." A deep voice rumbled behind them. Both bolted to the side as the imposing form of Chief Bogo emerged from the darkness, surveying the scene without emotion. His eyes finally rested on Murana lying prone on the floor between her two kits. "Is this the Dark Flame Wolf?"

At a nod from both Judy and Nick, he walked over to her and knelt to one knee. "She needs medical attention." That much was obvious to everyone. "However, she still has to answer for her crimes."

"But she saved everyone!" Steven was affronted. "If it weren't for her, hundreds of young kids would be dead or missing by now!"

"I also would be dead right now if it weren't for her." Max offered, staring at the buffalo's horns.

Bogo's face softened at both the skunk and raccoon. "I understand." He studied Murana's face carefully, her mask askew. "As one parent to another, I do. I'll take her to the hospital myself." Without another word, he effortlessly put a hoof under her legs and behind her back, lifting her off the ground as she relaxed limply in his arms. He looked over at Judy, "Officer Hopps, you disobeyed my orders to go home and rest. We will speak about this later."

Nodding at his two officers, he snorted an unspoken command for Max and Steven to follow him as they exited the warehouse. The rain was still pretty heavy, but had abated enough to not be a raging downpour. However, it was the pelting on her face that woke Murana from her pain-induced stupor. Realizing she was being carried, she jolted a little in Bogo's arms as she realized who he was.

"Do not be alarmed, Mrs. Wolford." Bogo pacified firmly. "I am taking you somewhere safe and your children are okay."

She turned her head to look past him at the two kits trailing behind, both looking miserably drenched. She nodded her head, sensing that no words really needed to be said. She stared ahead blankly, the rotating red and blue mesmerizing her attention. She barely noticed the wildebeest sitting along the edge of the pier until they were right upon him.

"Please stop…" She groaned. Bogo amazingly acquiesced, turning his body to face Ralph. She beamed at the wildebeest, lowering her arm out to him. "Thank you, for helping me."

Ralph took a few moments to realize her intent before smiling back and reaching out a hoof to touch her paw. "The pleasure was all mine, my lady."

Murana regarded the dark shape in the water. "Who is your friend?"

Ralph turned to the orca beside him. "This is Sebastian. He helped me." He put a hoof down to pet and appreciate the brave orca, who just clicked happily in response.

"That was brave of you. Were you the one who saved us?" She could vaguely remember the dark shape splashing out of the water to haul Dumptruck to the depths.

"Yes!" Sebastian was proud, undulating his body in an odd fashion. "He was definitely a squirmer, and it made for quite the fun ride!"

The three of them shared an odd look before Ralph covered for his fishy friend, "He's just still excited at having helped out official police business…"

"Come on, it's time to keep moving." Bogo was unyielding. He wanted to get out of the rain and Murana to a hospital. There was much to discuss and mull over.

The next few moments were a blur. Murana recalled being laid gently into the back of a cruiser, being driven for many miles. Seconds turned to minutes which turned to hours. Familiar faces flashed in her view: a skunk looking worried over her, a raccoon with a bemused smile, and a wolf that looked very much like her husband. The last face she saw was of her little brother, having died decades ago when they were young. Then darkness.

* * *

 _Downtown – Mercy Hospital – Southern Savannah off Oasis Plaza_  
 _Sunday –10:42 AM – Scattered Clouds / Occasional Sprinkling w/Light Winds_

The dull beeping of the heart monitor penetrated through the haze of consciousness. Murana's entire body ached and she could feel the shackles of metal cuffs around her legs and wrists once more. She moaned in misery as she opened her eyes to see herself again captive in yet another hospital room, breathing tubes pushed up into her nostrils. An IV drip shunt piercing a healthy vein in her arm.

A small paw reached out and caused her to gaze over and see her family there beside her. Anthony was sitting in a chair dozing, Max sleeping comfortably in his lap being held in place by one arm from Anthony. Steven was beside her with a relieved look, giving her wrist a small squeeze of encouragement. He leaned forward over the bed and gave her a small kiss on the cheek.

"Good morning, Mom!" He looked a bit beat up, but no worse for wear.

"Is this heaven?" She tried to get up further on the mattress, but was hindered by the cuffs. Her focus drifted towards Ronald Latrinae on the other side of the bed, his glasses perched pristinely on his muzzle. "No…I guess not."

Ron scowled at the remark, "That seems a rather rude thing to say, Boss."

Murana sighed, trying her best to turn over onto her side to face away from him, "Ron, I'm not your boss. I think that became very clear when you stabbed me yesterday."

"Yet you said there was a chance if I helped you out in rescuing all those kids last night." Ron pointed out, looking rather pleased at having rescued every one that fell into the water. "Each one is being held in foster care with the city until they can properly find homes for them, or at least a new orphanage to take them in."

Murana didn't respond for a few moments, "Thanks for that, Ron." The otter gave a grunt of appreciation for the compliment. She shifted slightly to look over at him, "Why are you still here? Shouldn't you be getting back to your father and report I'm still alive?"

If Ron was uncomfortable talking about his true profession so openly, he didn't show it. "I highly doubt my Dad would be so forgiving of my failure. He was never much of a father figure to me and liked me even less than my mother. I don't think staying away from home will be that much of a loss. Besides, I think I've found a better sort of people right here to put my stock into. Also as head of a prestigious bank, you could possibly use a proficient bodyguard as well as a loyal secretary!"

Murana had to stifle her laughter to keep the pain to her sides minimal, "Wow…you are bold and unrelenting, just like when I first met you." She stared off into space out the window for a time, neither she nor Steven wanting to awaken the softly snoring duo of Anthony and Max. At length, she turned back to Ron. "Due to the lack of valid candidates for the job at the moment, you will be retained on a probation basis at the pay of an intern. You will have to prove you have earned the role this time. Given all you've done, I do not think that is unreasonable."

"That is perfectly reasonable." Ron was smug and seemed very happy with this outcome. "I find this sort of work far more rewarding than anything I was doing before. It would be my honor to officially be your secretary this time around."

Extending her paw out as far as the cuff would let her, she waggled a finger at him, "Don't disappoint me, Ron. This is, of course, all provided I have a job to come back to."

"Indeed. There is a lot to discuss." The booming voice shook both Anthony and Max awake as Bogo strode into the room, followed closely by Judy, Nick and Ralph. Judy had her leg bandaged up and she was hopping along on a pair of small crutches. The three lined up along the wall behind the chief and stayed silent as Ralph closed the door. The buffalo inspected those in attendance and glared at the otter. "Other than those officers in the room and her immediate family, all others are to leave." His order was not to be disobeyed.

"I get the picture." Ron waved a paw at the surly police chief. He patted the bedside before leaving quietly, "Let me know how it goes, Murana. I'll be awaiting your call."

With the lone intruder to the proceedings gone, Bogo crossed his arms slowly, allowing his muscles to bulge. "You have a lot more supporters, Mrs. Wolford, than I would have expected given you are a mass murderer."

"Now that is uncalled for!" Steven was incensed on his mother's behalf.

"Silence!" Bogo roared, causing even Anthony to flinch. "I first must have to apologize to you, Mrs. Wolford. I was the one who forced your husband to lie to you to get you to confess your reasons for killing. What I expected was not what I got. I completely misjudged you. Don't gloat, because this doesn't happen often." Both husband and wife shared an odd look.

"Now, to the best of my knowledge, only those in this room are aware that you are the Dark Flame Wolf. As far as I'm concerned, I would like to keep it that way." Even Anthony seemed surprised at Bogo's decision. Apparently he wasn't included in the discussions involving the three standing up against the wall.

"As amazing as it may seem, like Officer Wilde here," He gestured to the fox, who seemed a bit flushed at being singled out, "I also do not like needless paperwork and bureaucracy. You have as much good going for you as you do bad. We get the courts involved in this and with the right lawyer, the entire case could be argued back and forth for months if not years until it is decided what to do with you. All the while you will waste away in a prison paid for by my taxpayer dollar until they come to a sentencing."

He leaned forward, unfurling his arms and gripped the railing at the end of her bed to emphasis his point. "I do not wish to waste my hard-earned money on a criminal such as you." This drew a small cry from Steven, but Bogo pressed onward. "So, I figured we should leave the courts out of this and settle this all in-house."

Murana was starting to get an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. She shied away a bit from his intense glower. "What do you mean by that?"

A mischievous grin slowly crept onto the buffalo's face, giving him a maniacal look, "You'll have to thank Officer Hopps for this idea. We managed to snag a deal with the District Attorney this morning. The papers are still being drawn up as we speak, but you will do twenty years of community service to the city."

This caused Murana to blink a few times as Bogo went on. "Oh yes, you will return to your old life, but you will be tagged and monitored 24/7 with an ankle bracelet by the ZPD. We will know your every location, movement and action for the next two decades. In addition, you will help support our department with your unique connections and skills as the Dark Flame Wolf."

"I'm not understanding. How exactly am I to help you?" She didn't like the shifty way Bogo was phrasing it.

"There is precedent for criminals with uniquely useful skills to be employed by the government to utilize their abilities for the betterment of society. We will have you be the Dark Flame Wolf for us, except you will do what we tell you and operate only within the parameters we set for you. Part of the agreement is that you will lend your services to the ZPD as our eye on the criminal organizations that we cannot openly track. Specifically this 'Arbiter's Hand' or whatever I'm hearing about." Bogo relaxed back into a curled arm posture, looking supremely victorious.

"What?" Murana's mouth dropped open. "That is forced labor!"

Anthony had to set Max down to the side of his chair as he stood up, addressing Judy directly, "And you were okay with this happening? How is this upholding anything remotely legal?"

Judy plodded forward on her crutches, paws gripping the handles tightly as she responded calmly to the question, "Based on my research and Grayz's investigation as well as first-hand witnessing what transpired, I believe this is the only possible option Mrs. Wolford has available to her if she wishes to retain some sort of normal life after this. I wouldn't have fought for this if not for the insistence of Officer Grayz and for the moral character Mrs. Wolford displayed this morning. It was extremely hard to convince the Chief to agree to this, but he was willing to give her a chance to accept. For her sake and for the sake of her family, I strongly urge her to take this opportunity to make things right."

Even Ralph interjected, "Do I accept all the things she has done? No, I do not. She has done some heinous things in her time and she should be held accountable for that. However, taking into consideration everything she has given back to the community, the economy and her family and the many innocents she has saved, I still wish to honor that side of her actions. I am in agreement with Chief Bogo's proposal."

"Well? Do you accept the terms? It's either potential lifetime sentence or this." Bogo was resolute, he demanded the answer now.

"And after twenty years, what then? Will I be free to live my life?" Murana was skeptical and couldn't really trust the law to keep true to its own promise.

"You'll be relieved of active monitoring, yes." Bogo conceded. "However, you will always be watched from here on out. You kill another mammal, you enact your own personal justice, or you do anything to break the law from here on out…you are sunk. I don't care how much you've helped out Zootopia as my officers can attest, you will be going down. I will see to it personally. Do I make myself clear?"

The tension in the air was thick. Murana and Bogo stared each other, everyone wondering which would back down first. Murana steeled her eyes at Bogo, "Then I want a full pardon after my time. I want my record wiped clean. You want me to do this for you, I expect a pardon."

The buffalo stared at her. "What?" One could hear a pin drop in the room as everyone unconsciously held their breath waiting. At last, he grumbled, "What makes you think we can give you that?"

She coolly smirked at Bogo, "You coming to me for my skills means there is a high demand for it. I want pardon."

"Deal." Bogo grunted, his demeanor improving dramatically. "One of my officers will be by later today to assist in your monitoring anklet." He shot a meaningful look at Anthony. "Someone who isn't your husband. Have a good day, Mrs. Wolford." He bowed his head and promptly clopped right out of the room.

Judy breathed a heavy sigh, "Phew, I'm personally happy you took the deal, Mrs. Wolford. I believe you're a good person at heart. You just were never given a fair chance. I just want you to know that." She gave a happy grin, putting her paw on Murana's before heading out slowly with her crutches.

"I never thought I'd be actually saying this, but…" Nick shifted his eyes back over to Judy's departing cottontail, "Can I have your autograph, Mrs. Wolford?"

"Nick!" Judy shouted from the hall.

He rolled his eyes. "Coming…!"

Ralph was the last one in the room, still unsure if he should say something or just take his own leave. "Mrs. Wolford, I have learned a lot of things in the one week I've been working on the force here in Zootopia." He took a few deep, ragged breaths. "I really don't think I'm cut out for city-life, for being on the force in a community so large that I can't even tell what's right from wrong anymore. Where we have to subdue criminals and have them work for us for the greater good rather than having them jailed, either because they had a point to why they did what they did or were too useful for us to put away."

Murana's expression swelled for the inexperience of this country cop. She motioned for him to come closer. "I can't really say I'm much better. There are other things I have a hard time regarding as anything but black and white. These next few years are going to be hard for me, but I've little choice but to endure for the sake of my family, which is far more important." She reached over so both Max and Steven could be squeezed tightly close to her. "However, I think you should do the same and stick it out here. There is a place for good cops like you."

Ralph grunted unconvinced, "Even if I did, I can no longer afford to sustain living here, especially after my wife's operation."

Murana massaged his hoof, "Well, you're in luck, Ralph. I've been given a stay of execution and I quite possibly have my job still. When I get out of here, I can help pay both your wife and son's hospital fees in full."

He practically staggered back at this generous offer. "I couldn't possibly accept such a-"

She shook her head vehemently. "Nope! You are not allowed to refuse. It is my choice and it is the least I can do to show my appreciation for you helping me get my son back." She began coughing again, cringing as she held her sides painfully. "It'll have to wait until I'm well enough to write the check though."

Speechless at her charity, he could only nod. "T-thank you very much! Should I relay the sentiments to Stella and Rodney?"

She warmly smiled, "If you want, but I would prefer you not to. I would not like them having any grand expectations of me when I meet them officially, and I would like to meet your family one day."

This brought tears to Ralph's eyes. "You are a rare wolf, Murana. Thank you."

"Don't mention it." Murana seemed content at having surprised him.

It appeared he had more to say, but he just gave her paw another pat before awkwardly seeing himself out, shutting the door silently.

The silence was broken when Anthony stepped up beside her and addressed the obvious, "You were in pretty bad shape earlier. They did some pretty high-tech surgery to patch you back up again. The doctors said they'll be observing your condition for at least another six hours or so. If you are stable then, they will consider sending you home with some drugs and instructions for us to care for you for the next few days."

"Being back in my own bed tonight sounds lovely." She daydreamed, her own eyelids feeling heavy again. "I'm feeling tired again. Would you mind if I asked all of you to stay with me until I wake up?"

"No problem, babe." Anthony seemed to be back to his old self. He relaxed back into the chair, getting comfy for yet another snooze.

"Come here, you two." She giggled, having both Steven and Max snuggle up next to her on the bed.

Despite the annoyance of having metal cuffs yet again chaining her to the bed, Murana was finally at peace. Feeling the two warm bodies slowly rising and falling with their steady breathing, she quickly went straight to sleep.

* * *

 _Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A_  
 _Sunday – 09:00 PM – Clear Skies / Light Chill Winds_

"This feels a bit unreal." Steven commented, setting his spoon down into the bowl with a clink, his legs swinging back and forth under his chair.

"What do you mean?" Murana took a bite before setting her spoon down too.

She had been released from the hospital about an hour ago, and was police escorted directly to her home. The nurse had provided her a set of immediate pain meds to help her manage the remainder of the week, with prescriptions to pick up later to refill. Anthony didn't really have anything prepped for dinner, since it being so last minute, so they just quickly opened up some canned soups and microwaved those.

Steven looked around the table, Max being across from him with Anthony and Murana on either side. "It just feels weird that after so long having you being the Dark Flame Wolf be this special secret that you and I shared to now having everything in our family knowing it. The cops having released you on watch and you're here, free to live your life and be with your family. It's almost like a dream come true that this was the outcome we got."

"Well, she's certain not entirely free to live as she chooses." Anthony reminded, swallowing a rather large mouthful.

Murana stretched out her leg as she studied the small beeping green light of the ankle bracelet locked around her hind paw. "Yeah, it's going to take quite some time to get used to having this annoying thing around my foot."

"It'll make taking baths and showers a hassle." Max pointed out, his focus completely on his food.

"Thank you, Max, for stating the obvious." She rolled her eyes.

"I do my best to help, Mom." Max rejoined, without skipping a beat.

"Mom?" Anthony asked incredulously. He pointed at the raccoon, "Is this going to be a real thing? Are we officially adopting him?"

Murana was going to take another bite, but set her utensil down at his remark. "I don't know, Anthony. Is there going to be a we? I know I'll be adopting him. I would prefer if you would stand together with me on this." Her expression was firm. She was not going to budge on the matter. She wanted a full family.

Anthony split his gaze between Steven and Max. Two unlikely sons he thought he would never have. One was a skunk, which always had a certain pungent air about him, and an unholy fascination with hindpaws. The other was a raccoon which had a rather odd quirk to him and how he behaved. He wasn't sure if he could relate to either. However, he did know he loved Murana, despite all she had done. If this was the hand that life dealt him, he needed to suck it up and roll with the punches.

After a prolonged exhale, he sheepishly met her gaze once more, "You know how I feel about wanting little wolf pups of our own, someone to carry on our blood lineage. It's been pretty big in my family, but yes, I will do my best to be there for them."

Her attitude melted at his sincerity. She reached across the table to hold one of his paws. "Thank you, Anthony. I know how hard that must have been for you." After a moment's thought, her face brightened. "Tell you what. I was reading up the other day on an experimental procedure that's out there that might be able to fix my womb and we can possibly try." His ears rose at this prospect, but she warned, "I make no promises though, but I will at least look into it. All right?"

"That means a lot…thank you, babe." He squeezed her paw back.

"This feels nice." Max spoke up, causing all to stare at him. He did his best to look at each in turn. "It feels good to be a part of a family."

"You didn't have any friends at Tail Hollow?" Steven inquired.

Max shook his head. "Not really. I usually ate by myself in my room. Having group meals like this is new for me. I like it."

Murana beamed as she ruffled the fur between Max's ears. "And there will be a lot more for you to like. I plan to head down to the courthouse later this week to get the paperwork I need to adopt you officially!"

"You sure you'll be well enough for that?" Steven gestured to her wounds, specifically the visible bulkiness of her patch beneath her clothes just over her ribs.

"Well, I certainly won't be going to work anytime soon. Week after next at the earliest." She laughed, tenderly touching where Ron had stabbed her.

"So who is going to be running the bank while you're gone?" Anthony continued to slurp down the soup now, grateful to be away from bland hospital food.

"Oh, I'm pretty sure Ron will have to learn to earn his keep. He's done quite the amazing job this past week already, so I have no doubt he'll continue to do so." She took another spoonful.

"You sure you can trust him? I saw him stab you." Max said bluntly.

"Wasn't he some assassin, like you?" Anthony suddenly remembered, pausing in mid-bite.

"Yes to both." Murana leaned back in her chair, not feeling as hungry anymore. "Time will tell if he proves himself trustworthy. For now, I'll be keeping a much closer eye on him."

"As you should!" Steven nodded, feeling protective of his mom. He squeaked as the phone in his pocket rung out. He flipped it open as the rest continued their meal. "Oh, hey Chris! Um…yeah, my Mom is here." He got a bit flustered. "No, you can't come over right now to see her! She's resting and recovering. Yes, I know a lot went down just outside your house at The Docks. Yes, I'll come by later and fill you in on all the details…geez…yeah, see you at work tomorrow!" He quickly shut it closed and dropped it into his pocket.

"Who was that?" Max was inquisitive.

"I can guess…Christopher Guara?" Murana smirked. "The fox on stilts?"

"You know he hates that, Mom." Steven reprimanded.

"I know." She lilted. "I've experienced that firsthand."

"Come on, you know he's my friend. Yeah, he can be hard to deal with sometimes, but he really is nice once you get to know him." Steven sighed. "He was just upset he wasn't able to help out this morning when he saw the Iron Vulture crash nearby his house. He knows you're the Dark Flame Wolf and wants to know how you're doing now."

"You can tell him tomorrow that I'm fine and he can come visit anytime if he wants another sparring match." She chuckled, cleaning up her placemat in preparation to clear the table.

"He's a weirdo." Max stated.

"Max, that's not nice!" She gave a small bap to his paw.

"What?" He shrugged, taking his last bite. "He reacts crazy to naked bodies and talks too much."

Anthony nearly spewed. "Naked what? Who, what and when did this happen?"

"I came by earlier to see if Mur…er, Mom was here and I found your neighbor having sex with some wolf on your couch over there." He pointed over to the den in front of the TV.

Murana grew cross, slapping her paws on the table, "Zoey!"

"I'm not coming out!" A small voice peeped from within the wall closest to them. It was apparent she had been listening in from inside her apartment.

"You and I need to talk!" Murana was adamant.

"Not until you've calmed down a bit!" Zoey fired back. "You might burn me alive too!"

"I am calm!" Murana continued to growl.

"And she's not allowed to burn anyone anymore anyway!" Steven chipped in, helping to clear off the table with Anthony.

"Small comfort when she's yelling at me!" Zoey's voice seemed to move further into the wall.

Murana scowled at the wall a few more seconds before turning away. "I'll deal with you later. At least it wasn't with anyone I know or my family. I probably would be more furious at that."

Steven cleared his throat nervously, wanting to hurry up and get into the kitchen to dump the bowls into the sink. "So, what do we want to do now?"

"Can I watch TV?" Max tried his best to hide the fact he had not really had many chances to even enjoy a television. He was quite excited at the prospect at watching movies whenever he wanted.

"I don't see why not. Anthony, can you turn on the TV and I'll go grab us a few drinks to enjoy?" She limped over to the fridge to pull out a few sodas. The drugs were doing their work to keep her upright, but she'd probably be feeling it in the morning.

"Hey Max, can you tell me which one they did it on?" Anthony was leery of both sofas in the den. After Max pointed to the blue one, he promptly selected the green for them to sit on for the duration. "I'll just have to steamvac those cushions tomorrow then."

Anthony had already plopped down on the couch and was being besieged by their two sons as they had already curled up next to him, one on either side of his legs. He gave a pleading glance to Murana to help assist him, but she just shook her head as she walked over, wanting him to endure being the father she wanted him to be. He sighed as he took the drink from her and did his best to relax between the two kits as Murana sat just on the far side of the couch next to Max.

They weren't event halfway done with the Western they were watching when a soft snoring could be heard from both Steven and Max. Anthony looked over to see Murana still rapt on the action unfolding. "Steven was right, you know." He said suddenly.

"Hmmm?" She didn't quite look at him, but she did turn her face slightly to indicate she was listening.

"This does feel unreal." He repeated Steven's phrase.

She regarded him more directly. "How do you mean?"

"Around this time last week, I felt I was the luckiest wolf on the force. I had gotten a promotion, was married to a hot, successful wife and was trying to have cubs to start a family." He took a sip of his drink. "Now, I'm sitting on a couch with two kits who are to be my adopted sons, no chance or potential chance for cubs in the future, and am married to a vigilante who used to murder criminals by burning them alive and is now on 24/7 ZPD watch." He huffed. "What a life."

"Hey, you're still married to a hot, successful wife." She bopped him on the nose.

"You know what I mean…" He considered his soda for a long time. "This just wasn't how I expected life to turn out."

Sensing his existential crisis, Murana got off the sofa and did her very best to kneel down in front of him. He attempted to assist, but she waved him off roughly. Firmly situated before him, she put a paw on both his legs. "I didn't ask to be abused, neglected and tortured when I was just an Omega runt living under my bitch of a mother. I didn't ask to be stolen by pirates and used as a pet and object. I didn't ask to be forcibly enrolled into a guild where I killed people for a living. I learned to take charge of my life and if I saw something I wanted, I went for it. I made myself the Alpha. I didn't expect to have anything good to just happen in my life, nor did I feel I deserved it if it did."

She reached out and caressed the side of his snout, "Yet, somehow life saw fit to deliver you to me, alongside two wonderful boys who deserve the love I never received growing up. I could be rotting in jail now for the rest of my days, yet somehow I am back in my home with the ones I love. How can I not be grateful for the things in my life, no matter how weird it might seem?"

"And you're going to be happy with me? With us?" Anthony's puppy-dog eyes bore into her own. "I've seen how AJ looked at you last time we met. Were you ever happy with him?"

Her shoulders sagged. "Anthony, AJ and I happened, yes. It was fun, and I was happy during the time I was with him. However, I was not ready to settle down then and honestly, I don't think I would have been happy in the long term. We were two different people with two different outlooks on life. It probably wouldn't have worked out. He's just a good friend now. You have nothing to worry about." To prove the point, she leaned up and licked him on the muzzle.

"Babe, I know I act tough and stuff a lot of times, but I really don't like change and I'm hesitant to accept it. I'm sorry I lashed out at you this week." He put a paw over hers as she continued to stroke his face. "I just want everything to be perfect."

"Things never will be perfect, but I forgive you. I'm sorry for keeping secrets from you too." She licked him again. "How about we promise to start over and try again at this whole marriage deal?"

Anthony chuckled. "I think I can do that." He suddenly grew serious. "But what will you do now? You've been moonlighting over a decade as the Dark Flame Wolf. You've been targeting rapists, molesters and more and killing them. Can you so easily stop doing that just because you agreed to Chief Bogo's terms? How can we be sure you'll hold true to your promise to us?"

Where Murana would have been offended by that question only seven days ago, she knew there was some sincere weight given to it. She stared off to the night skyline of Zootopia a bit before answering, "It will be hard. My fury burns hot when I see injustice done. Like you, I may be resistant to change, and I may want to kill them for what they do to others. It's what I've been accustomed to doing for years now. However, I think if I have you and my boys to help me, and quite possibly to stop me, I might be alright. I'll try to do my best for you three."

"Then I can accept that." He helped lift her into his arms and kissed her passionately. Max and Steven unconsciously moved aside to get more comfortable as they accommodated her bulk straddled atop Anthony. At length they separated from the kiss as he drew in a satisfied breath, "Amazing. I can't believe I'm in love with the infamous Dark Flame Wolf."

"Please, it's not that impressive." She chided, patting his shoulder roughly.

"Maybe not to you, but for a cop like me who has heard stories about you? For someone who has had dreams of one day finally catching you, to now find I was married to you all along? Come on…you can't say that isn't a little bit kinky." He leered, showing some teeth.

"Anthony…come off it. Now you're being silly." She giggled.

"Am I?" He snapped his teeth, looking rapacious. "You better watch yourself, honey. This big, bad cop is going to capture you and bring you to justice."

Murana could see where he was going with this. "Oh, no you don't! I'm still injured and I can't possibly do that right now!" She began to squirm away.

"Nope! I've been wanting you all week. I'm not going to waste this opportunity!" He smirked, firmly but gently rising up from the couch, holding firmly onto her butt cheeks, causing her to squeal. "Shhh, let's not wake the kids, please?"

Murana was both giddy and nervous. She gave one last look at her two boys, peacefully sleeping next to each other on the couch. Mollified that they would be sound asleep for hopefully the remainder of the night, she latched her arms and legs around her husband as he dutifully carried her to their bedroom. Shutting the door behind them with a hindpaw, he carefully laid her down onto their bed.

"Um…dear, I think I might need some help getting out of these clothes." She gasped, a sharp stab blazing through her ribs. "And quite possibly another pain pill."

Anthony stayed her body with a paw, looking with love and lust at her. "Murana," He addressed her formally for once, which caught her attention. "Let me love you. You don't have to do a single thing. You just lay there and enjoy it tonight."

She moaned as he held his distance above her, bringing his nose down to lick and nibble on her neck. He began to trail his kisses down her collarbone, helping her slip off each article of clothing gingerly. Continuing his journey down her front, she stretched out and relaxed her body for what felt like the first time in ages. She knew she was going to be well taken care of tonight. She was finally home.

* * *

 _Savannah Central - The Red Lion Apartment Suites – Forest Penthouse Suite – Den 23A_  
 _Sunday – 11:37 PM – Spotty Clouds / Calm_

Despite how much it soothed her nerves that night, their lovemaking couldn't lull her to sleep. Murana was just too high strung to just roll over onto her side and immediately begin to dream. If anything they could just be her nightmares again. Even among family who loved and now fully understood her, she would probably always be dealing with them. She instead just laid there naked in the bed next to Anthony, staring up at the ceiling as the minutes ticked by slowly.

A slight tapping on her balcony sliding doors caused her head to spring up. A dark silhouette standing on her verandah was framed by the twinkling lights of the city beyond. The two large ears on the small frame denoted that it was a bunny. Her eyes going wide, she rolled off the bed and crouched low behind the mattresses, grimacing as some pain shot through her body. Jack Savage was the last person she wanted to see right now. In her condition, he could overpower her easily and kill her.

The soft tapping continued, followed by Jack's voice. "Murana, please open up. I promise I'm not here to hurt you."

"Ha! Nice try." She hissed back, not caring if he actually heard her or not through the glass panes. She rummaged around in her nightstand to see if she had anything she could makeshift into a weapon. She considered waking Anthony up, but feared it might escalate the situation into something worse with more casualties.

Jack continued to tap. "I'm serious, Murana. I only want to talk with you. Take a look, I carry no weapons."

She peeked out from beyond the edge of her bed. Jack had both his arms out and legs spread, showing that there were no weapons in hand. She studied his shape to see if she could detect any odd lumps or shapes on his silhouette that might give away anything nefarious attached to his body. She wouldn't put it above that sadistic bunny to go suicidal after a mark and strap a bomb to himself to ensure he finished the job.

"This is getting rather old now, Murana." Jack sighed, folding his arms. "You going to open the door or not? I could always just break in if you prefer."

"No! No…I'm coming." She grumbled, cautiously getting up and walking over to the sliding doors. Her whole body was alert for any foul play by Jack. She unlocked the bolt and slid the door open, looking down at the confident assassin.

"You smell of sex, Murana." Jack's nose wiggled. "Didn't think you'd be celebrating your stay of execution this early. As much as I appreciate your invitation by coming to greet me naked, I'm not really here for that." He snickered at his own dumb humor.

"What do you want, Savage?" She snarled. "Speak your piece and get out of here or do what you came to do. You know I'm in no condition to fight you."

He sniffed haughtily. "You're right. I probably could have easily sniped you in bed right now and nobody would be the wiser. Thing is, word has gotten around that I've failed hitting my mark. Even if I completed the job now, the reputation of our guild is already tarnished. You know how much Rosco…"

"…cares about his reputation." Murana finished for him.

Jack snapped his fingers. "Exactly. Rival guilds are probably going to compete and vie for power now that weakness within his force has been shown. He had a rogue agent defect from his ranks that he sent me and Ron to kill, and now his own son has defected and his best remaining assassin failed. This does not look good and I do believe we'll all have marks on our heads from here on out, and not just from Rosco."

"Then I'll deal with that when the time comes." She narrowed her eyes.

Jack glanced down at her ankle bracelet, its bright green light glaring in the darkness. "I'd wager it'll be a lot harder to resolve this problem now that you're…in a different state of freedom."

"I'll manage. I always have." She surveyed her balcony, ensuring that nothing else was amiss besides this bunny. "Anything else, Jack?"

He folded his paws behind his back, looking bored. "That was about it. I just wanted you to know that I will no longer be hunting you. Consider it a favor from one old friend to another that I'm abandoning my mark."

"How generous of you." Murana mocked. She didn't trust this bunny at all.

Either not catching her sarcasm or just flat out ignoring it, he pressed on, "I'll probably hang around Zootopia a bit longer. I might find refuge working for another mob boss here or there before I move on. You'll most likely not see me again."

"That would be preferable." She leaned against the door frame, arms crossed as she swished her tail in impatience.

"That stings, truly it does." He said coolly. "However, it isn't unexpected given what I've put you and your family through. I do honestly wish you luck on your future. It doesn't look like it's going to be easy for you." He peered down over the edge of the balcony, his ears twitching as he remembered his other purpose. "Oh, right and I was told to give this to you by your friend down there. He said it's currently not tapped like the rest of your apartment now is."

Jack pulled out a small flip phone and handed it to her before saluting and attaching a rappelling hook to the railing before disappearing out of sight down the building. Murana stared at the phone a few moments before looking over to see a tiny figure in a trench coat and fedora. She couldn't make out much more detail than that from her height. Suddenly the phone buzzed and she had to open it since the ring tone was extremely loud.

"Hello?" She whispered into the phone.

"It's me." Billy Silva's voice came through the speaker.

"Could you have not had the volume up any higher?" She susurrated into the mouthpiece.

"I wanted to make sure you heard my call." Dismissing her growl of frustration, Billy dove right in. "I'm afraid it'll be hard for us to meet together going forward given how much the ZPD are swarming around your home. If anything, I'll be relaying to you drop point locations for future gear procurements. I'm glad you were able to work out a deal with the cops, but I would rather their influence not extend into my operations. I want to help you continue the job I heard they'll have you be doing, so to that end, this is how it's going to have to be."

"I understand. Thanks for all the help." She smiled down at him.

"I won't keep you up for much longer, it's getting late and I'd rather not be caught snooping around your apartment complex. I'll be contacting you shortly with the first drop. I've gotten some new ideas for a suit as a result of all this activity, so I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at what I've been cooking up."

"I'll look forward to it." She shivered, the light chill in the air finally getting to her bare fur.

"One last thing before we hang up." Billy's tone grew happy. "Check your bathroom sink for one last present. Your secretary, Ron, gave it to us when we asked, and AJ had the bright idea to pay for it remade. I think you'll enjoy it. He sends his regards and his love."

"How sweet of him. Tell AJ I said thank you." With a grunt of confirmation, Billy clicked off. She watched the small figure stride off into the darkness of an alleyway and disappear.

Curious now as to what was so important that Billy had to have either himself or someone else sneak in here to deposit some gift from both him and AJ, she padded quickly to the bathroom. Opening the door, she shut it partially to block the light as she flicked the switch on. There resting on the counter was a small package of craft tissue paper that you'd find stuffed into a birthday bag.

Parting the folds until she got to the middle, her breath caught in her throat as she beheld a simple necklace consisting of a scented pine tree attached. They had taken the lone earring Steven had gotten for her and made it into something far more useful and appropriate for her to wear given what she did. Tears glistening at the edges of her eyes, she opened the loop and dropped it down over her head, straightening it out across her breast. Now she could keep Steven's gift close to her heart no matter where she went.

Murana studied her reflection in the mirror, her paw still touching the pine tree around her neck. This was a far cry from the sniveling cub who would bunch up into a corner, trying her best to appear insignificant to avoid the next inevitable beating. Sometimes she would look at herself and not recognize who she was anymore. Was she a mother? A bank CEO? A killer? A vigilante? A wife? A scared cub pretending she knew what she was doing?

She reached out and touched the reflection of the tree on her breast, a tear streaming down her cheek. "I do not deserve this, but I accept it."

* * *

 _Although this chapter went by fairly quickly, it didn't make it any less tricky. I needed to tie up any loose plot threads and bundle the entire story in a neat bow that addressed everything in a logical and expected way. There is a happy ending, but it isn't without consequence and there are ramifications for prior actions. Researching some law, what Murana is offered here is an actual thing in real life, but it doesn't happen often and it is definitely something unique and rare. Given all that has happened, this was truly the best outcome for all involved. I had originally planned this day to be about two chapters long, however as I started writing it, things were coming together a bit quicker than expected and it seemed pointless to pad out the length of the day just to fulfill some quota. So instead, I split up the overall plot beats and character arc resolutions between this chapter and the epilogue coming next. I figured whatever I didn't cover here, I would wrap up more sufficiently in the epilogue._


	21. Epilogue - Burning Bright - A New Day

_Savannah Central - Snarlbucks – On the Corner of Screech Ave. and Pride St._  
 _Friday – 06:15 PM – Few Clouds / Mostly Sunny_

"Absolutely not!" They both cried in unison.

Murana hadn't even taken her first sip of her white chocolate, macadamia nut latte before Billy Silva strolled into the coffee shop, got to one knee and offered a wilted lotus to Steven. Both she and Courtney knew what that meant and they were shocked beyond belief.

For Courtney, this rival in affections had the brazen gall to waltz in here and try to take her man away. For Murana, she had barely gotten over the fact this crazy skunk was to be her daughter-in-law, and now an unusual acquaintance and business partner was vying for a spot in her family.

"Get up. You're embarrassing yourself." Murana snapped. "What are you even doing here?"

"What does it look like? I'm professing my feelings." Billy stated matter-of-factly.

He was attracting a lot of stares by the onlookers in the café. It was uncommon enough to have proposals to court another in public like this, it was even more so when it was a fox and a skunk involved. Steven was completely flabbergasted at the gesture. He knew what it meant, that Billy was interested in dating with intent to marry if it worked out, but the fact his mother, brother and his current girlfriend nearby watching this was making his cheeks flush something fierce.

"And he will be rejecting them right now, won't you, Steven?" Courtney seemed supremely confident at his answer, feeling she provided plenty for him. She was ready for marriage. However, she took Murana's strong advice to allow the relationship to progress naturally, and she was not going to let this upstart fox take him away from her.

"Billy, this is highly unprofessional. You said we would not be meeting in public like this!" Murana hissed, her grip nearly crushing her freshly made latte.

Billy looked up at the looming figure of his potential mother-in-law, "I am not here in any official capacity, Murana. I'm here to express myself to the one I've fallen for."

"Based on what? His scent? Since when did you two have any sort of contact outside of that one time back in The Fox Den?" She was not finding this funny at all.

"Well…we did exchange numbers and we've been texting back and forth." Steven said meekly, his entire posture shrinking as the two females near him glared.

"You've been doing what?!" Courtney was beside herself, shaking violently. "You promised me we'd be together and get married!"

"He actually promised you nothing." Max stepped out from behind Murana, being helpful as always.

"Can it, Max!" She roared. "You will be rejecting his proposal and you will be rejecting it now, Steven!" Courtney was practically frothing at the mouth.

Steven glanced from Billy's heartfelt eyes, to Courtney's burning snarl, to Murana's incredulous look and back to Billy. Steeling himself for the ensuing apocalypse, he puffed out his chest as he addressed her, "Courtney, I'm not sure this is working out. You're kind of crazy and very…um…lusty?" He couldn't find the word. "I've been trying so hard to figure out a way to let you down easy, but I'm just not interested in marrying you."

Murana mumbled under her breath as she took another sip of her latte, "Thank goodness. Another problem down, a new one arises."

Murana was personally not looking forward to having that skunk as her daughter-in-law. Courtney was a bit unhinged at times, and although she was grateful for her rescue a month back with Jack Savage, she couldn't abide by her mannerisms and complete lack of respect for her son's opinions and wants. It was just very hard to get her steady enough to listen that made it difficult to express this.

Courtney's jaw dropped as she saw her love being snatched away by a conniving fox. She bristled with indignation and bellowed as she made a charge at the fox, paws out to strangle his neck. Before anyone could react, let alone Murana who had no interest in stopping it, Billy whipped out a small syringe from his pocket and sidestepped her lunge, plunging the needle into her neck as he caught her fall in his arms. She instantly fell asleep as he gently laid her onto the floor.

"Nobody be alarmed." Billy tried to assuage the shocked cries from the surrounding crowd. "It wasn't anything harmful. Just a little something to give her a nice, calming nap so she can cool her jets." This drew a few nervous chuckles nearby. Getting back on one knee and representing the lotus, he asked Steven again, "Will you go out with me?"

After looking back at his mom and brother, Steven turned to Billy before nodding bashfully. "Yes…Yes!" He flew into Billy's arms as they hugged each other tightly. Both firm and awkward clapping began to spread throughout the café.

"We certainly have a weird family, don't we, Mom?" Max stepped up beside her and held her paw.

"We certainly do…" She agreed, taking another sip.

"What the hell did I miss?" Anthony rumbled in, finally having claimed his drink from the barista to find Courtney comatose on the floor with his skunk son hugging a silver fox.

"The usual craziness that our family seems to attract." Murana smirked, walking over to give him a lick on the cheek.

Anthony rolled his eyes, "I'm not going to clean this up." He nudged Courtney with a hindpaw. "Do I need to call this in?"

Murana giggled, "No, she'll be fine."

Anthony froze as he realized the strangeness of the situation. "Murana, you do know that's a fox propositioning our son, right?"

Murana shrugged as she continued to nurse her latte. "I've had similar partners in the past, well before I met you." She added, to clarify any misunderstandings.

Anthony blinked at her. "A…male…fox." He accentuated the point.

"That's the least of my reservations about this relationship." She seemed unfazed.

He squinted. "We're going to have to have a long talk later tonight."

"Shame, though." Max commented, regarding the female skunk snoozing happily. "She is very pretty."

Murana's eyes bulged as she stared down at her second son, "Don't tell me you're interested in taking her for yourself. You're way too young for love right now and she's a bit old for you."

"Not to mention insane." Anthony laughed as Murana whapped him on the arm for the comment.

"Nah…" Max shook his head, still regarding the skunk. "I really don't want my brother's sloppy seconds."

"Savage." Anthony marveled. "I like him. I'm glad we adopted him." He gestured to Max with his coffee cup. "Anyway, we have to get to work, babe, your first day on the job and all. I really don't think we should renege on your conditions for continued freedom."

Murana sighed as she asked a few bystanders to help her get Courtney into a booth to sleep off the rest of the drug Billy gave her. "Yeah, I'm still not really comfortable about doing this, but I've no choice if I don't want to go to jail." She whispered as they all headed out the door.

"Well, you could always hang up the mask and just live a normal life operating as a bank CEO. That's not a bad gig either." Anthony suggested, downing the rest of his cup before tossing it in the nearest trash.

She shook her head, "No, I don't think I could live with myself if I wasn't able to help out others." Taking a deep sigh, she looked over at the squad car where Fangmeyer, Anthony's tiger partner, sat waiting. "I'm a bit nervous. I'm afraid if I feel they deserve punishment enough, I could go overboard."

"That's why I'll be there to help stop you." Max said, patting her on the paw.

"My own little moral compass, huh?" She beamed at him, ruffling the fur between his ears.

"Are you sure it's wise that we have him tag along with you up there?" Anthony indicated the rooftops. "He is still very young, not even qualified for police work and could get seriously hurt. Not to mention he's our son."

"Technically speaking, I'm not qualified for police work either." Murana pointed out. "If you recall, this is all off-the-books and hush-hush, regardless of whatever drug deal they worked out with the DA. Neither the courts nor the general public know I am on retainer to the ZPD assisting like a special operative as a condition for my freedom. Having him along wouldn't really change or make the overall situation any better. So it's best that we're both unknown agents in the grand scheme of things." She smiled. "Besides, I've been training him these last few weeks. I think he has a lot of potential!"

"That and I get to be a super hero!" Max said proudly, placing a fist on either hip.

"Not quite, little squirt." Anthony chuckled, heading over to the cruiser.

"Ah, there is one piece of business I did want to conduct with you." Billy tapped Murana on the shoulder.

"What is it? We're about to go to work." She propped a paw on her waist, waiting for him to get on with it.

Billy pulled out a few spherical balls and gave a few to both her and Max. "Your son accidently left his scent canister at my workshop under the Fox Den, which is almost renovated for a grand reopening, by the way." He lowered his voice to a whisper. "Which AJ has expressed he wants you to come check out sometime." Back to normal volume. "I took the initiative to use his musk to create a few more stink bombs for you."

She gratefully took and placed them into her pockets. "Thank you. These could really come in handy."

He nodded. "You are still my best repeat customer after all. If they are allowing you to continue this line of work, then I'll be willing to assist in any way possible; provided the funds continue to flow into my account that is." He winked at her.

Steven's face brightened up with an idea. "Hey, maybe that's a way I can help you guys out!" All eyes turned to him. "I was always feeling down that I didn't have the aptitude Max did when it came to fighting or any of that gymnastic stuff you do. If you still need my musk for your weapons, I think I would be okay with providing that now!"

Murana expressed some concern, "You sure about that, Steven? You spent a good portion of your life terrified of being musked again since I found you."

"I think I'll be okay if I know it is to help you out, Mom." Steven put on his best goofy grin.

"Relax, Mrs. Wolford, I think I have a few humane ideas of how I can pump the musk out of your son." Billy gave a sly grin, regarding Steven's butt.

Murana coughed loudly to regain his attention, "I am still his mom and I am watching you." She made a point to use two fingers to emphasize the threat. "Don't think I'm totally okay with this…relationship right now. We have a lot to discuss."

"Babe, let's go!" Anthony hollered out the window of the cruiser.

"See you later, little stinker." Murana bent low to kiss Steven on the cheeks before running over to Anthony and Fangmeyer, Max in paw.

They had just shut the backseat doors and buckled in before Fangmeyer zoomed off down the road. They took a few hairpin turns before turning into an alley and shutting down all the lights. There were two piles of clothes in the back stacked neatly for them when they entered. As Anthony and Fangmeyer were looking out the windows for witnesses, Murana and Max were suiting up in the back. It was a tight fit, but they managed.

They stepped out of the car and Murana looked down to regard Max with his new suit. It was primarily purple in hues, with garish sweeping pauldrons that extended out past the shoulder. It was very angular in design to include the sharp edges where the mask ended past his eyes. The worst part, in her mind, was the sweeping purple cape that extended down to his ankles.

"What the hell is that?" She pointed at it.

Max looked back behind him. "That's my tail."

"No, that cape! What was Billy thinking?" She was now thinking of any manner of horrific ways he could die with a cape on.

"What? I liked it! I told him to give me a cape, just like a real super hero!" He seemed very pleased with his outfit, now having tried it on for the first time.

"No capes! They get caught in just about everything and could injure you severely! What was Billy thinking agreeing to this design?" Murana was about ready to call the whole thing off.

"It was my decision. I can handle this!" Max began to admire himself in the reflection of the car window.

Murana sighed, pinching the bridge of her snout in exasperation. "Fine…Fine! If you go and get yourself killed with the cape, I'm not going to come clean it up!"

"Thanks, Mom!" He smiled.

"Murana, take this." Anthony held out two ear pieces that fit perfectly in the opening cavity of the ear.

She and Max both nestled the small buds into their ears and tested it. "Can you hear me?" She asked.

"Loud and clear." Chief Bogo responded in her head.

"What the hell?" Murana was flummoxed that the chief would be monitoring the channel.

"Surprised?" There was mirth in his voice. "Like I would miss the inaugural re-debut of the Dark Flame Wolf on her maiden voyage with the ZPD. I'm here to ensure you don't stray from our agreement. I'm watching you every step of the way, here ready to sink your tail."

"Chief, can you stop threatening my wife?" Anthony riposted.

"When she has proven herself trustworthy in my eyes, then yes, I will." As an afterthought, "And don't talk that way to me again, Officer Wolford. You both better be damn grateful I allowed this at all. I could get in a lot of trouble by doing so, but I put my trust in my officers' judgment of her moral fiber and character, not to mention skills. Don't make me regret it."

A ringing in her clothes in the car caused Murana to dive in to grab her cell phone before Fangmeyer or Anthony could get to it. Pressing the button to talk, "Hey, Ronald, what's up? I'm about ready to head out on the town."

"I'm sure you are." The otter replied knowingly. "I was hoping to catch you before that happened. I'm glad I did."

"Make it fast." She reminded.

"You know those remaining totem fragments we've been collecting for disposal?" He waited until he heard a grunt from her. "Apparently, an interesting businessman named Shere Khan the Fifth called today inquiring into these fragments, asking if they could be returned to him immediately. They were stolen from him years ago and he got word that we are now in possession of them. He is willing to make a generous offer for their safe return."

"Tell him I'm not interested." Murana was curt. She didn't care who this person was, those totem pieces were dangerous and should be destroyed.

"He figured you might say that and warned you not to cross him." Ron seemed a bit amused at this, already knowing what Murana would say.

"You can tell him to fuck off, we're not interested." She paused a moment. "You can use those exact words. Thanks, Ron. Talk to you later." She clicked off and handed the phone to Anthony.

"You ready to do this? You don't have to go out there and risk your life like this." A hint of worry crossed his face.

Her expression softened as she leaned in for the kiss. "Like you don't put your life on the line every day being a cop? I've been doing this dangerous work far longer than you. I think I can handle myself and keep Max safe."

"I worry though…" He pressed.

"Anthony, stop." Murana laughed. "Don't be a hypocrite. I worry about you too every time you go to work. I'm left wondering if you'll be returning home each night. So, now here's my turn to help you. We'll be your eye in the sky. Okay?"

He nodded, reassuming his brave front. Fangmeyer sighed in the driver's seat. "I rather preferred you before I knew you as the Dark Flame Wolf."

"Anthony, slap your partner for me, will you? Thanks." Murana grinned with all her teeth before kissing him on the lips and heading over to Max. "You ready?"

"I am, Mom!" He stared at her directly.

"Onto my shoulders. We'll take it slow." She patted her collarbone.

Max sprung up onto her neck and coiled around as she extended out her arm and pressed the button on her wrist bracelets, shooting out a grappling hook skyward. It lodged into highest window sill and pulled them up. Flicking her wrists to extend her metal overclaws, she slammed her paws into the brick façade as she reached the apex, gouging deep holes into it. She climbed the rest of the way onto the rooftop and regained her bearings.

Fangmeyer had already drove out of the alley and was already cruising down the streets. She could hear Anthony in her ear. "We have two robberies on the south end of Tundra Town and an assault up on Tindle St. in the Rainforest District."

"I'll take the assault, you guys handle the robberies." Murana suggested.

"Approved." The voice of Bogo boomed in her mind.

"So nice of you to grant permission." Murana snarked.

"You're welcome." He responded, either not getting the jab or just plain not caring. "Time to see what you're made of."

Murana shook her head, looking down at the green light, dulled but still visible underneath her suit leggings. This was going to be quite the adjustment for her. This was her life now, moonlighting as a secretive ZPD enforcer under pain of eternal jail time while maintaining an illusion of normalcy being a bank CEO and mother to two adoptive kits. Tracked constantly and monitored daily, she had little privacy. Such was the penalty of her former lifestyle.

"Well, here goes nothing." Murana exhaled, gazing off into the distance across the skyscrapers to the distant jungle beyond of the Rainforest District. "Hang tight and I'll show you the ropes of how to move around this city for real, Max."

Feeling the tight squeeze of his little paws on her neck, she leapt off the building. Feeling the rush of air brush through her fur, she enjoyed the fall. It was moments like these that she treasured, being absolutely free and unhindered by the troubles of life, of being so in the moment that nothing else mattered. Opening her eyes after a few seconds, she gauged her next destination before extending out her paw and pressing the button.

* * *

 _At long last, I can finally get this entire story off my chest. It was brooding for quite a while since I first created my Darkflamewolf fursona. As I began to flesh out her backstory as a character, several of my online friends grew to like her and we began talking about how she would interact with each of their own fursonas. The longer we talked, the more we realized things could actually work out as a fully-realized story set in the city of Zootopia._ _I planned long and hard on what the overall scope and plot threads were going to be and we landed on Murana's past and her current struggle with being both a vigilante and a mom. By focusing on her family ties and how it conflicts with her killing, we were able to form the crux of the narrative and the overall end goal for her character arc._

 _W_ _ith such a unique character like Murana, who is Bank CEO by day, Vigilante at night, mother to adopted sons and married to a ZPD cop, we needed a varied cast of folks to support the overall narrative and keep things interesting. T_ _o this end, the original goal was to incorporate as many community member fursonas into the story and make it an OC-centric fanfic. It was insanely hard to craft a fully-realized story about OCs without having it be yet another fanfic that services the canon characters of the movie. Too often you see OCs just being self-inserted as 'friends' or 'supporting cast' that service Nick, Judy or anyone else from canon. Here, we needed to actually have Nick and Judy among others be the supporting cast and separate our OCs by them having their own sets of morals, values, beliefs and prejudices as well. Our goal was to make them just as three-dimensional as the primary Zootopia cast. Hopefully after you've read this entire story, you agree we managed to do just that._

 _I must first thank Berserker88 and Drummermax64 for loaning me Steven Stinkman and Max Thrash as my two adopted sons for Murana. This story would not nearly be as poignant or heartfelt without their help. They formed the heart of this story. Another special thank you to Blenderguy15 for brainstorming with me on delivering one of the most unique plot twists in the entire story with his character of Ronald Latrinae. His role as secretary turned assassin was something we planned for a long time and it is great to finally see it in action. I also can't forget AJ for well...AJ and Jack of Minds for Billy Silva. These two provided a nice backbone for Murana's history and explained a lot of how she's able to operate. Thanks for Raphael Luck for providing me his fellow vigilante maned wolf, Christopher Guara. Sorry I couldn't fit him in as well as I'd have hoped, but he did serve some key plot threads in advancing other characters onward. Finally, to Andy Lagopus of ZNN, for being some nice cameo comic relief! Zoey Jovani and Ralph Grayz are stand-ins for characters that were originally owned by Surrika Tunnah and The Winter Bunny - but due to losing permission to use them, I had to revamp the characters completely, changing their backstories and reworking the narrative to better fit the new mammals._

 _This was a huge experiment and one that I'm happy I was able to complete. I fulfilled a lot of promises with this one to a wide variety of friends who wanted to see this done and for fans who were curious about Murana and what she was all about. I hope I made a good example of what a true OC-centric fanfic should be in any universe. One that adds more to the world-building and works with the canon elements (characters and settings) to bring about a satisfying and fulfilling story that has a purpose. Hope you enjoyed the ride with me and maybe come up with some nice OC stories of your own in the setting of Zootopia!_


End file.
